Brother Dearest
by Wounded Wing
Summary: Ema and Emi are biological sisters, with Emi being the elder sister by four years. Emi knows of her adoption by Rintarou but has kept it a secret for Ema's sake. Now the two sisters will be moving in with their new family of 13 step-brothers. Is there love in the air for Emi as well?
1. Breaking the Ice

**Chapter 1: Breaking the Ice**

The two sisters walked in silence as they made their way to the Sunrise residence. Today was the day they would move in with their thirteen new siblings. Although they had known about the move for a while they weren't sure what to say or how to feel, though they both had similar thoughts running through their heads.

Were they going to be accepted into their new home? Were they going to _like_ their new home? Would they even fit in?

Emi, being the oldest by four years, tried not to seem too worried. She was supposed to be an example to Ema, and if she lost her composure, Ema would surely worry about the situation more than was necessary.

As they reached their destination Emi noticed two people standing near the entrance of the complex. From the distance she was at she could see that the taller of the two had short brown hair and the smaller one had pinkish-brown hair.

Beside her, she noticed Ema tense up a bit. Emi turned to her, worried, "Ema?"

Ema turned to her elder sister, "Yes?"

"Are you okay? You look a bit pale..."

Ema shook her head, "I'm fine sis. Just a bit nervous."

Emi smiled, "Don't worry, I'm here with you...and, if it's any consolation, I'm a bit nervous myself," she said with a laugh.

Ema brightened a bit at her words and brought her attention to the two people who had turned at the sound of Emi's laugh.

The tall one was the first to speak as they approached, "You must be Ema-chan," looking down at the uniformed brunette, "and you're Emi-chan, correct?" Turning his attention to the casually dressed brunette as the two girls nodded. "I'm Asahina Masaomi, the first son of Miwa, and this is Wataru, he's the thirteenth son." He pointed to the boy that was rocking back and forth on his heels.

Wataru sensed that it was his opportunity to speak and chose to launch himself at the two sisters in delight, "Yay! I didn't know that my big sisters would be so pretty! I'm so happy! It's so nice to meet you!"

Ema laughed in relief while Emi smiled at Wataru's childish nature. Masaomi smiled at the three and nodded his head in the direction of the complex, "Why don't we go inside, you can introduce yourselves to the others."

Wataru grabbed Ema by the hand and lead her ahead of Masaomi and Emi, talking excitedly with his new sibling. Emi walked beside Masaomi.

Masaomi looked down at her, "Sorry if Wataru's a bit over-excited. He's been waiting eagerly to meet you both, so he's a bit over-bearing at the moment."

Emi shook her head with a smile, "I would expect no less of a boy his age. It's a bit refreshing, to be honest, I've always wanted a little brother with that much energy."

Masaomi smiled. As she turned away to look at her newest and youngest sibling, he studied her out of the corner of his eye. Her hair was like Ema's, brown and wavy, but while Ema had her's up in a ponytail, Emi let it flow down over her left shoulder. She was dressed in a red blouse covered in white polka dots. She wore jeans that fit her snuggly, not tight and not too loose paired with black high-top chucks. Looking at her now, he couldn't seem to place her in any kind of profession. He tried to remember what his mother had told him in regards to Emi's career, but nothing came to mind. Perhaps she was still going to university? He'd have to remember to ask about it later.

The four siblings got into the elevator of the apartments. Masaomi turned to the two girls, "Your stuff has already been moved into your rooms, I'll show you where they are and let you get settled in."

Masaomi lead them out on to the fourth floor. He pointed to one of the rooms, "Ema-chan. This is your room. And Emi-chan, your room is across from hers."

The two girls nodded and headed to their respective rooms.

"Oh! Emi-chan?"

The elder sister turned, "Yes?"

"Your room was used as a storage by one of my brothers. He's a bit messy, so if you find something left in there, I apologize in advance."

She chuckled, "That's okay, no need to apologize. I won't find something...disturbing will I?"

Masaomi felt his face heat up at the blunt comment, "I-I certainly hope not."

Emi smiled upon seeing his embarrassment, "We'll head up once we've freshened up."

He nodded and grabbed Wataru's hand.

"Aww, can't I stay with them a little longer?" The younger brother pouted.

The eldest son smiled, "Don't worry Wataru, they'll be up in a little while."

Before entering her room Emi called to Wataru, "Wataru-chan!"

The boy turned in excitement at the sound of his name, "Yes?!"

Emi grinned at her youngest brother, "Once I come up, we can play as long as you want, okay?"

The young boy brightened visibly and began to jump around his brother, "Yay! Big sis is gonna play with me! Did you hear that Masa-nii!? Big sis is gonna play with me!"

* * *

Emi and Ema both stepped off of the elevator on the fifth floor. The two looked around the hallway, taking in the small details of their new home. The hallway lead up to a loft decorated with a lamp and a green sofa that was situated next to the rail that allowed one to look down into the lounge. They could see that there was a large red sofa with two separate knee-high tables in the middle. The place looked empty so the two girls made their way to the stairs on the right. From this floor they could see that below the loft was a big flat screen TV.

"Ah," came a voice from behind them.

Emi and Ema turned.

Standing behind them were two boys. One had white hair that covered his right eye and the other had glasses with black hair that covered his left eye. Both had beauty marks under their uncovered eyes and from what Emi could see, their eyes were a beautiful violet color.

Both girls regained their composure after taking in the two boys' appearance and bowed at the same time, "Hello."

The white haired boy stepped forward, spreading his arms wide and brought the two sisters into his embrace, putting his lips near their ears and whispered, "This is a 'Nice to meet you' hug~!"

Ema's face slowly became warmer as she tried to process what to do at that moment. She sneaked a peek at her sister's face and saw that Emi was trying to suppress her smile as much as she could. Emi, who was in reality a huge fan of hugs, was about to return the gesture when she noticed the other male walk up to them and suddenly punched his white haired sibling across the head, effectively moving him away from the two sisters.

Emi looked down at the white haired male in sympathy and then turned her attention to the dark haired one in question.

He smiled at the two, completely ignoring the fact that he had just punched his brother in the back of the head. "Sorry about Tsubaki. I'm Azusa. Please take care of me from now on."

The white haired brother, Tsubaki, quickly got up from the floor and rubbed his head gingerly, "That hurt Azusa~!"

Emi and Ema looked at each other in question and then back at the two similar looking brothers.

The two brothers seemed to realize what the questioning stares meant. Tsubaki placed an arm over Azusa's, "We look similar don't we?"

Azusa then replied, "We're identical twins."

"You two, you're too loud," came another voice from behind the twins.

A man with blond hair and spectacles came into the lounge rolling in a tray stacked with teacups and a teapot. He was dressed like a business man; a red dress shirt paired with a white tie plus a vest that was neatly buttoned over the shirt and black dress pants. Emi remembered hearing about this son. Ukyo, she believed his name was. Her guess was confirmed as he introduced himself, "Pleased to meet you two, my name is Ukyo. I work as a lawyer." His eyes trailed over the two sisters and stayed on Emi, "You're Emi-chan, correct?"

Emi had to try and keep herself from staring into his pretty blue eyes and nodded, "That's right! And this," she placed her hands on Ema's shoulder, "is Ema. Please take care of us from now on," she said as the two girls bowed at the three brothers.

Tsubaki smiled widely and wrapped his arms around their shoulders in another hug, "Yes, please do~!"

Emi tried to suppress her glee once again. She cursed herself for being such a snuggler but if all her new brothers were this affectionate, she could definitely get used to living with this many boys.

Just as she was about to hug Tsubaki another voice came from the loft.

"Tsuba-nii! What the hell are you doing in the house?"

The five siblings on the bottom floor looked up to see a red-haired boy in a high school uniform. Emi narrowed her eyes at the boy. He seemed familiar for some reason.

Tsubaki answered the boys calls, "Ah. Yusuke, welcome home~!"

The red-head, Yusuke, clicked his tongue in annoyance, "Don't give me that 'Welcome home~!' Bringing girls into the living room is-"

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence and bent a little closer over the rail, squinting at the two sisters. Emi heard him mutter, "Wait a minute."

Emi noticed that once he focused on Ema his eyes lit up in recognition. She heard a surprised exclamation from her sister as Yusuke quickly ran down the stairs stuttering, "Ah! W- wh- wh-! YOU!?"

He stood in front of Ema staring at her in shock. Ema stared at him, equally in shock as she muttered, "Asahina-kun?"

It finally dawned on Emi why this boy was so familiar. Yusuke was one of Ema's classmates. She had heard her sister talk about him a time or two. She looked at the two in amusement, this must be quite the awkward situation for the two of them.

Yusuke looked Ema up and down, trying to process the situation, "Why?"

Ema looked down from his gaze, "Ah, well, that's..."

Ukyo cut into the conversation with a stern voice directed at the white haired brother, "Tsubaki. I'm sure I told you to inform Yusuke of this."

Tsubaki then turned away with a grin and giggled, "Hee hee~."

Yusuke narrowed his eyes in anger, "Tsuba-nii! You didn't tell me on purpose!"

"On purpose? You make me sound like a bad person," Tsubaki replied in a mock hurt voice.

Yusuke merely clicked his tongue, used to his brothers antics and narrowed his eyes at Ema again. She flinched under his glare. The uniformed boy then muttered, "I won't accept it."

"Eh?" Ema replied in confusion.

Yusuke merely walked passed her, "I can't accept my classmate as a sibling."

Tsubaki followed him and questioned in delight, "What was that? What won't you accept?"

While the two brothers bickered Emi slowly took her gaze away from Yusuke to Ema. The elder sister smiled at her siblings confusion. It was painfully obvious to her what Yusuke had meant by that statement. He had a crush on her sister. Ema didn't know of course. The thought of someone liking her had probably never crossed her mind and so she was left to wonder what she could have done to make Yusuke so opposed to her being his sister.

A rustle of beads caught Emi's attention. She looked over at the stairs and saw a buddhist monk making his way toward the small group that had formed in the lounge.

"We finally meet, my little sisters," came the smooth, silky voice from his lips.

All the brothers that she had met so far, with the exception of Wataru, had been handsome. However, Emi felt that this brother in particular, was what women would normally refer to as "drop-dead gorgeous".

He was blond, like Ukyo, but his hair was longer and seemed to have a mind of it's own, giving him a wild look. His face was handsome with a sharp nose and a sultry smile. Emi could see, as her eyes slowly trailed down his neck, that a chiseled body awaited her gaze below his robes. Using all her willpower, she kept her eyes locked with his as he moved closer to his new siblings.

Once he was within arms reach he took hold of Ema's right hand and Emi's left bringing them up while saying as deeply as he could, "If you want to hear some prayers, come to big brother anytime."

As soon as he finished his sentence, he brought their hands up to his lips and kissed them. The two girls looked at him in mild shock while the brothers merely watched with bated breath. The silence was only broken when Yusuke shouted at the blond monk, "Hey, Kana-nii!"

Two other boys had entered the lounge and watched silently at the unfolding scene.

Juli, Ema's pet squirrel, jumped down from Ema's shoulder onto Ema's outstretched hand that was near the monk's face. The blond seemed to recognize Juli as he muttered, "Ah, from earlier..."

The squirrel blinked at the older male and before anyone knew it, Juli scratched the man on the nose.

Ema covered her mouth in surprise. Emi however went over to her brother who was clutching his nose in pain. She reached out and touched his hand, motioning for him to let her see the wound. He hesitantly obliged as Emi examined the wound. It didn't look like Juli drew blood at all, merely punched him.

The elder sister stepped away from her brother, "It looks like he didn't use his claws so there's no blood. I'm sorry about Juli, he's a bit over-protective of Ema." She bowed in apology and looked over at Juli who was still on Ema's hand, "Juli..." She trailed off, looking at him sternly. The squirrel squeaked and hid behind Ema.

The blond waved off her apology, "It's fine but I'll try to remember that from now on. I realize I didn't properly introduce myself. I'm Kaname."

Emi smiled, "I'm the elder sister, Emi."

Kaname smiled and repeated her name, "Emi-chan, huh?"

Ema stepped forward, "I'm Ema, it's very nice to meet you."

He smiled at Ema as well, "I must truly be blessed, to have two adorable little sisters like you."

Ema looked down in embarrassment. However, Emi leaned to the side and spoke to Ukyo, who was standing behind Kaname and listening intently at the exchange, "Is he always like this?"

The finely dressed male blinked in surprise and smiled, "Unfortunately so. I apologize on his behalf."

She laughed, "It's fine."

"Ah, you've all met each other."

Everyone turned to looked over at Masaomi who had also entered the lounge with Wataru jumping up and down behind him. The younger brother had his sight set on Emi and ran toward her shouting, "Big sis!"

He jumped the last step and Emi spread her arms wide and took hold of Wataru, planting a foot behind her to keep her balance. He looked up at her, his chin nestled against her chest. Had it been any other brother, Emi probably would have felt a little uncomfortable, but Wataru was a kid, so she didn't seem to mind their position much.

"Sis, when are we gonna play?!" He asked with glee.

"In a bit Wataru-chan, don't worry."

Her little brother was pulled away by Masaomi who motioned his hand toward the giant red sofa, "Why don't we sit down and have a cup of tea?"

* * *

All the brothers and their two new sisters sat together on the couch. Starting from the left was Azusa and Tsubaki. Subaru, one of the brothers that had been watching the scene earlier was after, and next to him was Kaname. Ema sat next to Kaname while Wataru sat in between her and Emi. At Emi's side followed Masaomi and Yusuke. Iori, the other brother that had entered with Subaru, sat next to Ukyo, who was closest to the staircase.

Ema looked over at Kaname, "Again, I'm sorry about what Juli did."

Like he did with Emi's apology, he waved it off, "Like I said, it's fine. And besides since it's my little sister's pet, I'll have to spoil it too."

After hearing those words Juli immediately jumped up on the back of the sofa and starting squeaking at Kaname threateningly. Ema quickly picked him up and settled him on her lap, "Sorry."

Iori decided to speak up, "Were you two surprised? I'm sure it must be a bit of a shock for you to suddenly have so many siblings."

Ema and Emi nodded but it was Ema who replied, "Yes. We'd heard about all of you earlier but it's still..."

Wataru grabbed the hands of the two girls at his side, "Well, I'm happy to have two big sisters! Let's go play in my room! I have a big rabbit toy!"

Masaomi looked at him from his seat next to Emi, and said to the boy in a gentle voice, "Wataru. Let's leave that for a bit later."

The youngest son pouted but agreed with his brother, "Okay."

Emi looked at all her gathered siblings, "Um..."

All nine brothers looked at her but it was Kaname who answered, "Yes?"

"Well, I remember dad mentioning thirteen brothers, but there are only nine of you here. Are they out somewhere or..."

Kaname nodded, "Two of them live separately and the other two are at work. One of them is there." He laid his hand over the remote that was on the table and pressed the power button. Emi could see from the screen that it looked like a giant stadium filled with people. Kaname turned up the volume and she could hear music and saw that the audience was filled with girls cheering and moving their glow sticks to the rhythm of music.

The camera suddenly cut to a boy, his hair was wild, eyes bright, and the cheekiest smile Emi had ever seen, like he knew the effect he had on the girls in the audience.

Wataru broke into a grin, "It's Fuu-tan!"

Ema looked down at her brother, "Fuu-tan?"

Tsubaki leaned against the pillow in his arms and muttered, "What a fake smile."

Emi silently agreed. When she looked at the screen again, his smile reminded her strongly of the Cheshire cat.

"A tour?" Came the voice of Subaru. Emi looked at him from the corner of her eye. To be honest she hadn't expected such a gentle voice from someone who looked so...intimidating.

She quickly turned her attention to the conversation her brothers were having about the idol on the screen.

"He's in Hokkaido," muttered Yusuke with a hint of spite.

"We should ask him to bring a Kanikawa eel as a souvenir," added Ukyo.

"Souvenir?" Ema asked in confusion.

Masaomi smiled in her direction, "Fuuto is our brother. His stage name is Asakura. His real name is Asahina Fuuto. He's fifteen years old."

Emi looked back at the screen in surprise, "Wow. Pretty amazing, for a fifteen year old."

It was silent for a while. Everyone's attention diverted to the idol on the screen. When suddenly Emi heard her sister let out a shaky breath.

She turned to her and saw her sister blinking rapidly, her face becoming pale. Masaomi had heard her as well and asked, "Is something wrong?"

Ema looked up and saw the worried look the two older siblings were giving her. She smiled, "Ah, no, I was just feeling a little dizzy..." She suddenly winced in pain. Emi, sensing what was about to happen, quickly got up and knelt next to her sister just as Ema's body fell forward. The boys sat up at attention. Emi looked over at Masaomi, silently asking him to help her. He got up and knelt at her side. He brought his hand to Ema's forehead, "She has a high fever."

Emi, with her instincts already taking over, turned to Kaname who was nearest and spoke in a quiet but commanding voice, "Pick her up. She needs to lie down."

The monk sensed that he shouldn't question her orders at the moment and immediately lifted Ema into his arms like a bride with her head resting against his chest.

Masaomi got up from the floor, "I'll go get the first aid kit." Wataru clung to his brother, "Is Sissy gonna be okay?"

As Masaomi was about to reply Emi rested her hand on Wataru's head, gaining the attention of the youngest Asahina son, "Wataru-chan, she'll be just fine. You trust your brothers don't you?"

The little boy nodded, tears threatening to fall down his eyes. Emi nodded to Masaomi, signaling him to continue on to get the first aid kit.

Emi looked at Ukyo, "Ukyo-san, can I ask you to come along as well?"

He nodded, "Of course."

Emi then lead the way to Ema's room, leaving behind six worried brothers.

* * *

**A/N: Well, first chapter done. Please tell me your thoughts on this beginning chapter. What do you think of Emi so far? What do you think she'll be like? Who do you think she'll fall for? Her relationship with Ema?**

**I hope you all look forward to the next chapter! Thanks for reading!**

**-W.W.**


	2. Little Talks

**A/N: Wow! When I went to check my email, I was surprised at how many notices I had from FF. Holy smokes! Thanks so much for all the faves and follows! That's really sweet of you! And a big huge thanks to those who reviewed! I'm touched that you took your time to do that! To my anon reviewers:  
**

**_Supernova_, thank you for your kind review, and I'm glad that you like the story so far!**

**__****Day,****thank you as well for that sweet review, I'm glad you're liking the story as well!**

******Now onto the chapter! Happy reading!**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Little Talks**

"Thankfully a fever is all she has. If I had to take a guess, I'd say it's due to stress."

Emi sighed in relief, "Thank goodness."

Ema, who had awoken just as she was being tucked in, looked at her sister in apology, "I'm sorry for worrying you. I'm fine now."

Emi sat near Ema's head and placed her hand on her sister's hair, "I should be the one apologizing. I should have seen the signs this morning. If I had, this wouldn't have happened. I'm sorry."

Kaname spoke up, "Neither of you have to apologize."

Ukyo nodded in confirmation, "Worst case scenario, we do have a physician."

Masaomi smiled at his brothers compliment, "More like, pediatrician. Just tell me if you need anything."

Ema smiled at her four gathered siblings, "Thank you very much. I'm alright, really."

Juli jumped down from the headboard and started squeaking at Ema.

Emi looked at her sister again, "I shouldn't have let you take care of the moving details by yourself."

Ema shook her head, "It's okay, sis. I told you that I wanted to."

"That must have been difficult for you," came an unfamiliar voice. Emi and Ema looked over at the door.

A man stood at the door. Had it not been for the voice that he had just spoken in and his dress style, Emi could have confused him for a woman. He had long light ash brown hair and mauve colored eyes. He had a very serene smile plastered across his face.

Ukyo replied, "Oh, you've come home."

The man nodded and spoke, "Yes. I heard voices, so, I came."

His manner of speaking was odd. It was relaxed and slow. And for some reason, hearing him speak set Emi at ease.

Kaname turned to his sisters, "We mentioned him briefly earlier. He's the eighth son, Louis."

Ema sat up carefully, "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm still dressed like this."

Louis walked further into the room and knelt beside the bed, "It's not your fault Chii-chan."

Emi lifted an eyebrow in confusion at the odd nickname but agreed with the mellow brother, "Yes, Ema, it wasn't your fault. If you need to blame someone, blame me."

Louis looked up at Emi, "Don't be silly, Mi-chan. You were working late, the whole week. You've been tired lately as well."

Emi's eyes widened. How did he know this stuff? She had never mentioned working late to _any _of her new brothers.

Louis seemed to not notice her confusion and looked at Ema, "You did all the preparations, and both of you have been, surrounded by people you've just met. You two must be tired."

Ema looked at her sister in surprise. Both of them thinking the same thing: _How did Louis know all this?_

Once again, Louis ignored their confusion, "Your hair," he said, leaning over to touch Emi and Ema's hair, "it's so pretty." He looked at Ema, "When your cold is gone, let me, arrange it for you."

His gaze slid to Emi's, "In the meantime, can I, do yours?"

Emi blinked at his request. Ukyo, sensing his sisters' confusion helped explain, "Louis is a hairdresser."

"I see," said the two girls.

Louis smiled at them.

Masaomi chimed in, "Ema-chan, did you feel dizzy when you sat up?"

Ema turned to him, "I'm fine now. The medicine seems to have worked."

He nodded, "I see." Standing up he turned to Ukyo who had made his way to shut the veranda curtains, "I think she'll be fine. But just to be safe let's have rice porridge for tonight's dinner."

Ukyo nodded at his elder brother, "I'll go prepare it."

Emi stood up as well, "I'll help you."

Ukyo looked ready to protest but Emi cut him off, "Please. It'll be faster with two people."

The blond brother smiled in amusement and wondered if he'd be submitting to his sister's wishes so easily in the future as well. He nodded at her and tilted his head in the direction of the door, silently telling her to follow him.

Ukyo paused and turned to Ema, "For taking a bath, please use the one on the fifth floor. The bath in this room is currently broken."

"I'll leave the instructions on how to get there on your desk," added Kaname.

"Okay," responded Ema.

"Don't stay in too long. Goodnight, little sis." Kaname said quietly as he shut the door to Ema's room.

* * *

Once Emi and the boys were out of Ema's room she bowed to them, "Thank you so much for your help."

Kaname smiled, "Of course. We're family now."

Masaomi nodded, "That's right. If you two need anything please don't hesitate to come to us."

Ukyo and Louis both nodded as well. The blue-eyed blond placed his hand against Emi's back and turned her toward the elevator, "Let's go make Ema-chan some delicious rice porridge, hm?"

Emi smiled at him, "Okay."

"Oi," whined Kaname, "Stop stealing all of my darling little sisters' smiles!"

As she was walking ahead with Ukyo, Emi turned and called to a sulking Kaname.

He looked up at her. She smiled brightly at him, "Thank you for your help today."

Kaname stared at her, stunned. Behind him, Masaomi and Louis chuckled at his silence as Ukyo and Emi disappeared behind the closing elevator doors.

Ukyo looked down at her, "Don't encourage him too much."

Emi looked up at her brother and gave him a small grin, "Don't worry. I've dealt with Kaname's type before."

Ukyo blinked in surprise, "Kaname's type?"

Emi nodded, "He seems like the kind to flirt with any girl that has a pretty face. But he also seems like one who doesn't allow himself to get attached to just one girl, so that must mean he has several...companions."

At Ukyo's silence, she began to worry if she had said too much. "I'm sorry, I'm totally wrong aren't I?"

Ukyo chuckled as they stepped off at the fifth floor, "No, you're not completely off."

She silently sighed in relief.

Once they got to the stairs, the remaining six brothers immediately got up from the sofa and began to question their siblings regarding Ema's condition.

Ukyo raised his hand for silence, "She's fine, the fever's been reduced and she'll be resting in her room for today."

Wataru came up to Emi and wrapped his arms around her waist, "Sis?"

Emi smiled down at her brother and brought her arms around him, "What is it Wataru-chan?"

"Are you feeling okay too?"

Emi grinned as she lifted her arm and flexed, "Don't worry Wataru-chan. Big sis is tough!"

The thirteenth son smiled, "That's good! Can I go visit Sissy right now?"

Ukyo nodded, "You can go when we deliver her porridge."

Wataru cheered and ran over to the sofa and began to watch the rest of Fuuto's concert, chanting, "I get to see Sissy later~!". The rest of the brothers seemed to follow Wataru's example and trusted that Emi and Ukyo had the situation under control, so they went over to the couch to keep Wataru company and chat amongst themselves.

Ukyo and Emi walked over to the kitchen. Ukyo gave her a quick tour of where everything was and set her to work.

Soon enough there was a dinning table set up for eleven people with a tray of extra porridge separated from the group. Ukyo lifted the tray, "I'm sure you'll want to take this to Ema-chan?"

She nodded as she took the tray from him, "Ukyo-san."

He turned to her, "Yes?"

"If you don't mind, I'd like to have my dinner with Ema. At least to keep her company for today."

He nodded, "I'll let everyone know. Oh, and don't forget to take Wataru with you."

She smiled as she lifted another bowl of porridge on to the tray and made her way to the lounge where the rest of her brothers were gathered watching TV. She called out to her youngest brother, "Wataru-chan!"

The little boy jumped up from his seat and ran to his sister, "Are you gonna eat with Sissy?"

She began to walk up the stairs, "Mhm! I don't want her to be alone for today, but tomorrow for sure, we'll eat together with everyone!"

Wataru skipped along side her, "Yay, I can't wait! Will we still be able to play today?"

They stopped in front of the elevator door as it began to slowly open, "No, I don't think so. I'm sorry Wataru-chan."

Wataru looked down sadly as he poked the fourth floor button, "That's okay big sis. Sissy got sick so I can wait until she's all better and then we can play together, right?"

Emi nodded and walked out once the doors opened, "That's right. Thank you for being so understanding Wataru-chan."

The boy brightened at the praise and rang the bell of Ema's door. There was shuffling coming from inside and then they heard the small footsteps of their sister as she opened the door. She had changed into her pajamas.

Emi lifted the tray in her hands, "Dinner's here."

The younger sister smiled and opened the door wider for her two siblings to come in.

Wataru immediately gave Ema a hug, "I'm glad you're okay, Sissy! Everyone was really worried!"

Ema hugged Wataru back, "I'm sorry for causing trouble."

Emi flicked her across the head once she had set down the tray on her desk, "Ema. It's not 'Sorry for causing trouble'. You should say, 'thank you for worrying'."

Ema looked at her sister and blushed shyly as she repeated the words to Wataru, "Thank you for worrying about me."

The young boy smiled brightly. "Wataru-chan," said Emi, "can you relay those words to your brothers for us?"

He mock saluted the two girls, "Of course!"

Hugging his two sisters quickly, he ran back out of the room yelling, "Hope you feel better soon Sissy!"

The two sisters looked at each other, amused smiles forming on their faces that soon broke out in unsuppressed laughter.

They re-entered the room and began to eat their meal. In their silence, they could hear their new family's voices from above on the fifth floor.

"It sounds like they're having fun up there," Ema said suddenly.

Emi looked at her little sister, sensing what she would say next, so she cut her off, "Don't you dare apologize again."

Ema shut her mouth. After a few seconds she began, "But..."

Emi covered her mouth, "Just...stop. Ema, please. No more apologizing. We're all family now. And besides, if the boys hadn't helped us, I'd be more worried that they didn't. What they did for you, seeing everybody worried, I know that I can trust them now, especially with you. So no more saying you're sorry. Our brothers did what I expected them to do and they were glad to help. End of discussion."

Ema looked down at her bowl and continued to eat, knowing well enough not to continue arguing with her sister.

"Will you be working tonight?" Ema asked after a minute of silence.

In response, Emi took out her phone and searched through her messages.

"No, it looks like I don't work until tomorrow night. But I'll need to make some errands before I go to work. Oh and it looks like my shower doesn't work either! I'll be going up to take a bath after I'm done here. Will you be taking one today?"

Ema nodded, "Yeah, maybe after I've rested up a bit more."

The elder sister nodded and placed her bowl back on the tray, "Done with your porridge?"

Ema nodded and handed her the empty bowl.

"Alright. I'll take my leave now. Goodnight Ema."

"Goodnight sis."

* * *

As Emi entered the loft she could hear the voices of her siblings coming from the kitchen.

As she walked down the stairs to the kitchen the room quieted at her entrance. She saw that Yusuke, Iori, and Subaru weren't there.

Tsubaki was the first to greet her, "Yo, little sis~! How's Ema-chan doing?"

She went over to the counter and placed Ema's bowl in the sink and responded, "She's looking a lot better. A good night's sleep should set her right."

Emi took her own bowl and went over to the pot of porridge. She saw that it was more than halfway empty. She looked up surprised, "Wow, you guys were hungry, huh?"

Tsubaki grinned at her, "That's because our adorable little sister helped make that porridge~!"

After serving herself another bowl, Emi sat at Tsubaki's side, "Well, it was Ukyo-san who did most, if not all, of the work."

Ukyo smiled at her from his seat, "You helped out plenty. Tsubaki is right to praise you."

Her heart swelled at her brothers compliment. As she felt her cheeks heat up, she bowed her head to them, "Th-Thanks."

"Say, I've been meaning to ask."

Emi lifted her head to face Masaomi, "Yes?"

"I don't think my mother told me what it is that you do. Are you still a student?"

"Mhm. I go to Meiji, like Subaru-kun." She replied as she ate her porridge.

Azusa smiled, "That's quite a coincedence."

Emi chuckled, "Yeah, I was pretty surprised to see his jacket. I'd never seen him around before."

Kaname spoke next, "So you're a full-time student, huh?"

She shook her head, "No, I'm a part-time student. I have a night job."

Ukyo looked surprised, "What job is that?"

Emi looked down at her porridge bowl shyly, "I sometimes sing at some restaurants or play guitar at small cafe's."

Tsubaki leaned forward in his chair, "Eh~? So you're a musician. Are you planning to become famous?"

Emi shook her head with a smile, "No. Music is just a hobby for me. I plan to open up a small bakery someday. So, I'm studying a bit of business at the moment and I'm attending some baking classes on the side."

"It's great, that you know what you want to do. You must really enjoy baking." Louis said with a small smile.

Ukyo nodded, "Perhaps, I would be able to teach you a few things as well?"

Emi's eyes lit up, "Would you? That would be a big help!"

"Why not pursue music?" Kaname asked.

She closed her eyes in thought, "Hmm. Well, I guess it's because it would take a while for me to become _really_ good at it. I guess my singing ability is average, maybe a bit more? But I'm only just beginning to get good at guitar. Which most of that credit belongs to my boyfriend."

There was tense silence as Emi said the last word. Wataru was the one to ask what everyone was thinking, "Eh? Big sis has a boyfriend? Who is he?! Can I see him?!"

She smiled at her younger brother, "Yeah, let me just...," she reached into her pocket and took out her phone, "I have several pictures of us here. Ah, here's one, it's a pretty recent one too. Oh, and his name's Takeshi."

She selected the photo and turned her phone for the brothers to see.

They could see Emi standing next to a man who was a good head taller than her. She was smiling brightly, her hair was nicely curled with a flower pin clipped on the left side of her hair. The man next to her was handsome and smiled just as brightly. He had a strong jawline and had hazel eyes. Couple that with a head of messy black hair and that gave him a sexy look.

The brothers faces were expressionless and it was Kaname who spoke first, "So how long have you two been together?"

She brought the phone back to her side and placed it in her pocket, "Hm. Well we got together at the beginning of the last spring quarter, so we're coming close to a year now."

Some of the boys seemed to get a mischievious glint in their eyes. Azusa smiled at her, "You should invite him over, we'd like to meet him."

She laughed as she stood and took hold of her bowl, "Are you guys gonna be questioning him to see if he's treating me right and all that? I've seen that happen in a few dramas." She paused on her way to the sink and turned a suspicious gaze at them, "You guys aren't actually gonna do that...right?"

"What? Of course not." Tsubaki said as he winked at Azusa.

She smiled hesitantly, "Well, if you guys say so. You know, maybe I should bring him over, see how it all plays out. Dad hasn't even met him, so meeting you guys is as close as he can get. Maybe next week?"

Masaomi looked at his brothers. They all nodded at him. "So it's decided, Takeshi-kun will come visit next week."

Everybody began to leave their seats. Before exiting the kitchen, they placed their bowls in sink.

"Damn it. I don't wanna wash the dishes~!"

Emi turned to Tsubaki who was staring at all the plates with distaste.

Kaname laughed at his distress, "Good luck, Tsubaki."

Emi looked at the dishes, "I could help, if you want."

Tsubaki brightened at the words, "Eh? My cute little sister wants to help her big brother out? Well, who am I to refuse~."

Azusa slapped the back side of his head, "It doesn't work like that Tsubaki. Emi-chan, don't help him. This is his punishment for losing a bet with Kaname."

Emi tilted her head in confusion, "A bet? On what?"

Kaname took hold of her shoulders and began to lead her away from the kitchen, "While you were showing us that photo of your boyfriend, I made a bet with Tsubaki on how long you two have been together. If I won, he'd clean the dishes for me today, if he won, I'd clean them for him when it was his turn. I bet that you and Takeshi had been together for 11 months and Tsubaki said five months. I was the closest, so I win."

She looked at Tsubaki who was muttering while scrubbing the dishes and turned back to Kaname, "Do you guys do that a lot? Bet, I mean."

Ukyo cut in, "Far more often than necessary."

"Well, we're gonna turn in for the night." Masaomi said as he laid a hand on Wataru's head. "Wataru's been having trouble with some of his homework so..."

Emi smiled and gave Wataru a thumbs-up, "Do your best Wataru-chan!"

The boy smiled and saluted, "Yes, ma'am!"

After Masaomi and Wataru said goodnight, Ukyo walked ahead toward the stairs with Kaname and Louis in tow, "We'll be heading to bed now as well. Goodnight, Emi-chan."

"Goodnight my cute Emi-chan." Kaname said with a wink.

Louis brushed a strand of hair as he passed her by, "Goodnight, Mi-chan."

Emi smiled, "Goodnight."

As they headed up Emi looked over at Azusa who was sitting on the red couch scrolling through his phone.

She went over and sat down on the other side of him and let out a long sigh.

He turned his gaze from his phone up to her, "You okay?"

She lay herself on her side as she brought one of the yellow pillows to cushion her head, "I'm fine. Just a bit tired."

The black haired brother smiled, "It's been quite a day for you, hasn't it?"

She closed her eyes, the events of the day flashing across her eyelids, and she sighed contentedly, "Mhm. But it hasn't been bad at all. Everyone's been so nice to me."

Azusa set his phone down on the table, "Were you expecting us to reject you?"

"No, no. Nothing like that. I just wasn't expecting all of you to be so accepting. I mean, you already have twelve other brothers, so I thought Ema and I would be seen as extra baggage."

Azusa nodded in understanding, "I can see how you could come to that conclusion. We felt that you would think the same about us."

She giggled, "Really?"

He smiled, "Yes. Some of us speculated that you'd hate living with us. We thought that you'd want to leave because of so many boys in the house."

Emi took the pillow from under the head and hugged it against her chest, "Eh~? That's a bit surprising! But I'm glad. I had a lot of fun meeting each of you today. So now I'm kind of anxious to meet the other three. Do you think they'll like us?"

Azusa massaged his chin in thought, "Well, Hikaru-nii will definitely like you two, no doubt about that. And Natsume will accept you and Ema, I'm pretty positive about that. As for Fuuto...he's-"

"A self-centered brat."

Emi lifted herself up and turned to look at Tsubaki who was wiping his hands off on his jeans. Azusa gave him a stern look, "Tsubaki..."

The white haired male made his way toward his twin, "C'mon Azusa. You can't deny it. He's spoiled and he thinks he owns the world."

The dark haired twin sighed.

Emi decided she'd voice some of her thoughts on what she had seen from Fuuto on TV, "I don't want to sound rude, I mean, I don't really know him all that much, but from what I saw today on TV, Fuuto seems like the type to give peopl a bit of cheek."

Tsubaki laughed, "That's exactly what he's like! Emi-chan, you sure have a good eye!"

Emi smiled, "Honestly it only took one smile from him and it clicked. He'll probably be the one to give me a hard time, won't he?"

Azusa nodded, "Unfortunately."

Emi looked down at her hands, "Any tips on how I can handle him?"

Tsubaki scratched his chin in thought, "Well, you could always try to be rough with him. He's not used to people back talking him or using force. Most people just bend to his every whim, so if you meet him with that same attitude, you'll definitely catch him off guard."

"Hmm. Now I'm kind of excited to meet him." Emi responded.

Azusa tilted his head, "What do you mean?"

Emi grinned, "It's been a while since I've been rough on anyone. I sometimes wrestled with Ema when we were younger. And she was made fun of once or twice by some kids, so I had to teach them a bit of respect."

Tsubaki let out a low whistle, "So our cute little sister turns out to be quite the ferocious tiger."

"Well I only get rough when I have to. Since Fuuto seems like he won't show me any respect, then I'll make him show me that respect. Actually, this can go two ways. He either respects me after our meeting or he'll just hate me even more..."

She let out an exasperated grunt, "I don't want him to hate me~!"

Tsubaki laughed and went over to her side, "Don't worry Emi-chan~!" He wrapped and arm around her shoulder, "If Fuuto gives you a hard time, Azusa and I will knock some sense into him. Right, Azusa?"

Azusa sat down on Emi's other side and placed his hand on her shoulder, "We're very good at persuasion."

Emi smiled brightly at her siblings and snaked her arms around their waist. She brought the two of them into a hug as she lay her head in between their shoulders, "Thanks guys."

Tsubaki and Azusa looked down at her in surprise and then turned to each other with a smile. They quickly enveloped Emi in an embrace.

After a few moments Emi leaned away from the two, blushing slightly from her sudden display of affection, "I'll be heading up for a shower right now. Are two gonna be heading to bed?"

Azusa sat back against the couch, "Not yet, Tsubaki and I have to practice for our next job."

"Practice?"

Tsubaki went over to one of the drawers that was under the TV and took out a thin pamphlet, "Azusa and I are voice actors."

Emi's eyes lit up, "Seriously? Like, for anime?"

Azusa chuckled, "Not just for anime, we also do some video game voices."

"Wow! That's so cool!" She looked from one male to the other in amazement.

"So Emi-chan, you like anime?" Azusa asked.

Emi nodded excitedly, "Yup and video games too! But it's not just me, Ema loves them too."

"Eh~? So Ema-chan likes them too?"

"Yup! Though she's a much better gamer than I am. I'm decent and that's mostly because she taught me."

Azusa smiled, "This is a pleasant surprise."

She grinned at him, "Didn't expect us to like anime and play games?"

He nodded, "It seems we have a bit more in common that I thought."

Emi got up when she remembered that she still had to take a shower and patted the two boys on the back, "It seems so. Well, I'm gonna head on up. I'll be seeing you guys tomorrow."

The two twins nodded and responded in sync, "Goodnight Emi-chan."

She chuckled, "Goodnight."

She quickly made her way back to her room and grabbed a pair of pajamas and her bath necessities. She made her way to the elevator and was surprised to see Subaru inside.

She smiled at him as she entered the lift, "Good evening Subaru-kun."

He nodded at her, taking notice of her bath supplies, "Are going to take a bath?"

"Yeah." She then noticed he was carrying a change of clothes, "Oh, are you going up to take one as well?"

"Yeah. But you can take one first if you want. I was going to grab a bite to eat anyway, so I might as well do that now while you're there."

"Oh, thanks. I promise I'll be quick." The elevator doors opened on the fifth floor and the two stepped out. Subaru nodded, "Take as long as you need."

They went their separate ways. Emi arrived at the washroom and set her supplies down and quickly got the water running.

* * *

Emi stepped out of the wash room, dressed in a simple white t-shirt and knee-length shorts, feeling refreshed. She quickly made her way to kitchen. Passing the lounge, she could hear Azusa and Tsubaki practicing their lines. She was tempted to sneak a peek but decided to just let them be and go tell Subaru that the bath was free now.

Arriving in the kitchen she walked over to the rail and looked down to see Subaru finishing a small sandwich.

"Subaru-kun?"

He tore his gaze from his food and turned his attention to his sister, "Oh, done already?"

She grinned as she leaned her arms on the rail, "I told you I'd take a quick shower didn't I?"

He nodded, his lips twitched into a small smile as he got up after his last bite.

Emi's eyes widened slightly in surprise, "Well what do you know? You can actually smile, huh?"

His cheeks turned a light pink and he stuttered, "Wh- I- uh-"

She laughed, "No need to get bashful. You should smile more though. I thought you were kinda intimidating when I arrived."

His cheeks slowly became a bit more red, "S-Sorry. I'm just...not really good at talking to girls."

She waved of his apology, "Don't worry about it. Anyway, I'm heading off now. Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

She turned and headed toward the elevator back down to the fourth floor. She quietly walked to her door. Once she was inside she looked around her room, a huge smile plastered on her face. Her thoughts on the events that happened today.

This was her home now. And she was sharing it with Ema and her ten new siblings.

This was _her _family.

That one thought ran through her head until she fell asleep, her huge grin still stuck on her face.

* * *

**A/N: So! I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter, we got to see Emi's interaction with some of the boys in here, and a bit of sister interaction as well! So please tell me what you think. Emi's talk with Ema? Emi's boyfriend?! Emi's interaction with the twins? Her interaction with Subaru? Predictions for who she'll fall for? Perhaps suggestions on who she _should_ fall for?**

**Thank you again for reading! Hope you guys are ready for Emi's meeting with Fuuto~!**

**-W.W.**


	3. Phone-calls and First Impressions

**A/N: To my anon reviewers:**

_**Blah Blah Blah:**_**I'll do my best to keep the chapters above 3,500 words! Thank you for your kind words!**

_**Supernova:**_**Well, here's the Fuuto meeting! I hope it's to your liking!**

_**Day:**_**Thanks for the kind review! I'm really glad that you're liking Emi so far!**

**Anyway, happy reading!**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Phone-calls and First Impressions  
**

Emi awoke suddenly. She lay on her back, her eyes staring up at the unfamiliar cieling. Blinking rapidly she lifted herself on her elbows and looked around her room. Then she remembered; she was in the Sunrise residence, with Ema, with her new family. She couldn't help but grin and thank all the powers that be that yesterday hadn't been a dream.

Glancing at her clock, she saw that it was still pretty early, but she managed to push herself off the bed and change into the new day's casual attire. Today she pulled on a tight black shirt that had a guitar printed on the front and dark blue denim pants.

She reached for the hair brush that was on the counter and looked around at some of the open boxes that were spread across her room. She looked in each one carefully, searching for her bag of pins.

"Hah!" Emi said triumphantly when she found the bag after searching through three other boxes.

She set to work, quickly running the brush through her hair once and placing the pins on stray little hairs. She checked herself quickly in the vanity mirror and seeing nothing out of place she headed for the door.

She walked across the hall quietly, not wanting to wake her sister and the rest of her brothers. Once inside the elevator she pressed the button for the fifth floor.

Emi leaned against the walls of the lift and pondered what she should make for breakfast. She didn't know what the brothers might like. Perhaps a traditional Japanese breakfast? She nodded to herself and began to walk to the kitchen when the elevator doors opened.

The house was still a bit dark and as she got closer to the kitchen Emi was surprised to see a light coming from the kitchen. She quickened her pace and made her way down the stairs quietly and saw that Ukyo was up and about, already preparing breakfast.

"Ukyo-san?"

The blond lawyer turned to her in surprise, "Oh, Emi-chan. Did you sleep well?"

Emi walked down the last few steps and went to the kitchen counter near Ukyo, and replied with a smile, "Better than I have in a long time."

He smiled in return, "I'm glad to hear that. You're up rather early though..."

She leaned against the counter and placed her chin on her arms, pouting slightly, "Well, I was hoping to make breakfast for you guys but..."

Ukyo looked down at the fish he was cooking with masked guilt, "Ah, sorry. Cooking is my duty in the house so..."

She laughed a bit, "It's fine. But I'd like to help if that's okay with you?"

"Of course, how about you get started on the miso soup?"

She flexed both of her arms, "Leave it to me!"

Ukyo chuckled at her eagerness and decided to make small talk, "So, will you be going anywhere today?"

"Hmm? Yeah," she said as she prepared the ingredients for the miso, "I was gonna head to the Ginza. I need a new dress for my job today."

"I see. Will it be at a nice restaurant?"

"Yup. It's gonna be in one of the Shinagawa hotels."

Ukyo hummed, "It must have taken a while for you to be hired for a first-class diner."

Emi laughed wryly, "You have no idea. Thankfully one of the owners who I usually sing for had some contacts, and she got me a job with some really fancy joints."

Ukyo began to place the fish meat on different plates, "Do you enjoy your work there?"

"I do. The band members that I get to play with have all been really nice. The owners too."

He smiled, "That's wonderful."

She grinned, "What about you, Ukyo-san? Do you like your job as a lawyer? I imagine it must be pretty difficult at times, no?"

He nodded, "At times, but the work is fulfilling. Working with the clients and when the case ends in our favor, those are the times when I'm happy with my job."

Emi looked at him from over her shoulder, "That's wonderful! I'm so jealous!"

He turned to her, his eyebrow arched up in confusion. She smiled at him, "I hope that I can be like that about my job one day! I always imagine myself with my bakery. I'll be stressed out from all the work, maybe scold a few employees, but then at the end of the day, I'll look at all the hard work everyone has put forth and all the pastries that we've sold, and I'll realize just how much I love my job!"

She stopped and realized how ridiculous that must have sounded and looked down at the soup and began to swirl it with a wooden spoon, "S-Sorry. I know it must sound stupid."

Emi nearly dropped the spoon when she heard Ukyo's deep laughter. She turned to him, her cheeks darkening, "Wh-Why are you laughing?"

He stifled his laugh with the back of his hands, "I'm sorry. That was rude of me. But, it's not stupid as all. It's sounds very lovely."

She fiddled with the spoon, "Y-You think so?"

He flashed a sincere smile, "I really do."

She felt a wave of affection for Ukyo at the moment and had he not pointed out the fact that the miso was bubbling, she would have hugged him on the spot. After saving the miso, the two began to set up the table.

"Good morning!"

Ukyo and Emi turned up to the small loft and saw Ema, who looked a lot better today. Ukyo smiled at her, "Good morning. Did you sleep well?"

Ema nodded, "Yes, thanks to everyone's help."

The younger sister glanced at the food on the table, "Amazing. Did you two make all of this for everyone?"

Emi grinned, "Cooking duty belongs to Ukyo, but I helped out."

Ema walked down the stairs, "Is there anything I can do to help out?"

Ukyo nodded, "Could you serve the rice? There are quite a few who wake up late." He looked at a white board that was marked with different colors on different days. "Please serve five rice bowls."

Ema smiled and replied with a happy 'yes'. Just as she was about to move, Wataru walked down the stairs, rubbing the sleep away from his eyes. He stopped in front of Ema and turned his droopy eyes to her face. He smiled sleepily at her, "Good morning, Sissy."

Ema bent down to his eye level, "Good morning, Wataru-chan."

Wataru's smile widened, "I'm so happy! I'll be having my meals with my big sisters from now on!"

The two sisters smiled at him and replied together, "That's right."

The sound of footsteps gained the attention of hte four siblings. From the top descended Yusuke and Subaru.

Ema stood straight, "Good morning!"

Yusuke looked at her for a moment and then replied, "Yeah." He looked away sadly and walked to his seat. Subaru walked forward.

Emi noticed her sister tense up. Her shoulders rose and her eyes looked at everything but Subaru. "G-Good morning." Ema stuttered. Subaru looked straight ahead but replied, "Yeah."

Emi looked at the two suspiciously. Did something happen yesterday without her knowing?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Ukyo who had come back around the counter, "How rare that Yusuke shows up on time for breakfast."

Yusuke sat down at his seat with a irked look on his face. It was then that Emi noticed Juli for the first time as he ran up toward Yusuke and began to squeak at him in anger. The red-head leaned back on his chair in confusion. He looked at the squirrel and asked him, "What!?"

Emi sighed. That damn squirrel was suspicious of everyone that was male. She walked toward Yusuke and stood next to him and looked down at the creature sternly, "Juli."

The little rodent gazed at her in slight fear. Emi grabbed him by his bow, and held him close to her face, "That's not nice Juli. Yusuke's not hurting anyone, especially not Ema." She set him down on the table again, "Apologize to Yusuke."

The squirrel turned his eyes on the red-head. Yusuke looked at Emi, "I-It's okay. I don't really care or anything."

Juli walked towards Yusuke's hand and placed his small paw on his finger. Yusuke looked at the tiny creature in amazement, but the contact was brief as Juli sped away after a second, back toward Ema.

Yusuke looked up at Emi, "You really didn't have to..."

She placed her hands on her hips, "I know, but Juli needs to learn to be civil with boys."

She turned back and headed toward the counter to help Ema serve the rice bowls.

* * *

After breakfast Emi, Yusuke, and Subaru left for school. Ukyo had left earlier with Wataru to drop him off at school and then make some quick food errands. Emi headed out a little after everyone left.

She took the train to the Ginza shopping district. Although the clothes here were expensive, she did like the designs and brands, and besides, she was going to be singing at a five-star restaurant tonight. She'd probably be fired the second she showed up in less than adequate clothes.

She looked around for a dress that suited her style until she found a beautiful red dress that sold for a good price.

Continuing on her shopping spree, Emi went to look for some low heeled shoes. Thankfully she found a discount store where she found a good pair at a much lower price than in some stores she had passed by.

The sun was still high in the sky when she left the discount store. Emi took out her phone and saw that it was only one in the afternoon. She stood there and pondered if she should go back home. She still cash to burn and she had more than enough time. "Perhaps I can buy something for Ema..." she muttered to herself. After a moment she nodded at her decision. She'd buy something for both Ema and Juli.

On her way to see some other shops, she decided to call her boyfriend. She hadn't spoken to him for two days, with all her time being spent stressing over meeting her new family members.

She waited patiently as the line rang. She was about to hang up when someone picked up the phone, "Hello? Emi-tan?"

She felt butterflies in her stomach when she heard her name, "Yeah, it's me. Sorry I didn't call you Takeshi."

"Hey it's no problem! I know you were busy with moving and all. So, how did it go with those thirteen brothers? Are they all snobs? Perverts?"

She laughed, "No way! They were all very nice. But I only got to meet ten of them. The other three were out."

She heard her boyfriend laugh at the other end, "Aw, I guess I can't go and save my girl from a band of misfits anymore, huh?"

She felt her cheeks heat up but she replied, "Too bad for you~!"

He chuckled, "Damn. Well, what are you up to right now?"

She looked around the shops, still searching for a place that might have accessories that Ema might like, "I'm in Ginza right now, just finished shopping for my attire for my night job. Right now I'm looking for a place to buy something for my sister."

"Oh, for little Ema-chan? Hey, how did she handle the brothers?"

She smiled, "She handled it pretty well. Though she ended up fainting due to stress."

"She's alright now, right?"

"Yeah, she's much better today. All of our brothers were worried for her. They're good guys."

"Is that admiration I hear in your voice, cuz I'm getting kinda jealous over here~!"

She blushed, "N-No! Takeshi!"

She heard him laugh aloud at her outburst, "I'm just joking Emi-tan!"

She huffed, "Geez. Anyway! The real reason I called you is because my brothers want to meet you."

There was a few seconds of silence before Takeshi answered, "They want to _meet_ me?"

"Yeah. Is it too akward for you?"

"A bit, but I'm okay with it, I guess. When's a good time for me to come over?"

Emi let out a sigh of relief, "Are you free next week?"

"Hmm, let me check...next week...yeah, I've got Thursday off. I'll meet you there?"

"Yeah, sounds good! Thanks Takeshi! And don't worry, they really are good guys."

"Yeah good guys, who apparently have a sister complex."

She pouted, "Takeshi..."

He snorted, "Alright, alright! But I'm bringing pepper spray just in case they don't deem me 'good enough' for their cute little sister."

She laughed, "They won't do anything to you."

He chuckled, "Well, I'll talk to you later, yeah?"

"Yeah, see you on Thursday."

"Hopefully I'll live to see the end of it." He said before hanging up.

She giggled. One of the reasons she liked Takeshi was his sense of humor. He could always make her laugh, no matter the situation.

Emi put her phone back in her pocket and continued to look around the shops. After spending two hours going in and out of other shops, she located a good accessories shop and bought some things for her sister and Juli. She then found her way to a small cafe, where she spent an hour watching passersby and playing games on her phone, while eating a delicious ham sandwich. Once she was done she took the train back to Kichijoji.

After a few minutes of walking, Emi beheld the sight of the Sunrise residence. She brightened when she saw Ema walking toward the complex ahead of her.

"Ema!"

The uniform clad girl turned. She waved her hand high in the air, "Sis!"

Emi jogged the short distance to Ema's side, "Hey, how was school?"

"The same, really." Then she giggled, "Though, Yusuke-kun had a sudden outburst during class."

Emi smiled, "Really? What did he say?"

The two entered the front doors and took off their shoes near the lockers.

"He suddenly slammed his fist on his desk and shouted, 'I won't lose!'" Ema replied in her best Yusuke impression. Emi laughed as she put away her shoes, "He said that in front of the whole class?"

Ema nodded, "But I'm not quite sure what he meant by it."

The older sister shrugged her shoulders. The two girls then entered the elevator. Ema looked down at the bags her sister was carrying, "What did you buy? Do you need help?"

Emi looked down as well and gave her the lightest bag, "Well, I was in Ginza. Honestly, I was going to buy my dress and a pair of shoes and that's it, but then I thought of you and Juli." She pointed to the bag that she had just handed to Ema, "Look inside, tell me what you think."

While the two girls stepped out on the fourth floor, Ema looked inside and pulled out three different kinds of hair bands. They all had three distinct accessories attached to them. One had a panda bear, the other had what looked like a squirrel and the last one was a flower.

Ema looked at them with bright eyes, "They're so cute. Thanks sis!" She quickly gave her sister a hug.

Emi pet her sister's head, "I'm just glad you liked them."

"I love them! I'm gonna wear one right now!" She said as she tore open the one with the flower. She reached up and slid off the heart hair band and replaced it with her new one.

Emi smiled, "It looks great."

Ema giggled. She went over to her room and looked at her older sister, "Are you going to be heading up right now?"

"Yeah, I'm just gonna put these things away, you going to go get Juli?"

She nodded, "I'll wait for you."

Emi shook her head, "It's okay, go on when you're done, I'll be there in a bit."

* * *

Emi got off on the fifth floor. She walked down the hallway when she heard her sister's voice and a male voice that she'd never heard before. She quickened her pace when she heard the male voice say, "Oh, Miwa's husband's daughter!"

Ema replied, "That's right!"

She heard the other voice hum and then respond, "So that's you...but I heard there were two sisters."

Emi walked quietly to the green sofa and peeked over the rail as Ema responded, "Sis is still down in her room."

Emi looked at the boy in shock. It was Fuuto! She couldn't see his face, but she could recognize that wild hair in an instant.

She tensed as Fuuto walked closer to Ema. She heard him say, "Well, you're pretty cute as it is, but it seems like you aren't very smart."

Emi felt her eye twitch.

_Did that brat just..._

Fuuto seemed to think he needed to elaborate on his last sentence, "Or rather, you're an idiot."

Emi had heard enough, she walked over to the stairs and called out, "Oi!"

Fuuto and Ema turned to see a severely pissed Emi.

Fuuto smirked, "Oh, are you the other idiot older sister?"

This time Emi's cheek twitched. _Tsubaki was completely right about this little twerp._

Emi walked up to Fuuto, silently thanking the heavens that she was just a smidgen taller than Fuuto, and without saying a word, she snaked her arm around the back of his neck while simultaneously kicking his feet out from under him. She maneuvered her body as he fell on his stomach, while she landed on his back, her hips straddling him. She clenched her hand to her free arm and held Fuuto down in a headlock.

She leaned her lips to his ear and whispered in a low, biting tone, "Wanna repeat that last line to me again?"

Fuuto stared ahead in shock. His mind was reeling. He wasn't sure what to think. But he was brought back to his senses when Emi repeated her question, "I _said_, do you want to repeat that last line to me again?"

Gathering himself, he tried to wiggle out of her grip but she only tightened her hold.

Emi smirked down at him, "Ah, ah, ah. You don't get to leave until you say the magic word."

Fuuto turned his head a bit to look at her. He smirked, "Pretty please, big sis?"

She momentarily let go of her free arm to smack him on the head, "The other one, idiot!"

"Ugh! Fine. Sorry~."

Emi felt her eye twitch again, but she decided it was good enough for now. She leaned back down to his ear and whispered, "Now wasn't that easy?"

On the spur of the moment, Emi decided she should apologize in her own way, and pecked Fuuto on the cheek before releasing her hold on him completely.

The young idol turned fully and stared at the older Hinata sister in shock. He lifted his hand to touch his cheek. Quickly gathering his senses, he stood up, "Heh~? So you're that type of sister huh? The loving kind who watches over her younger siblings and gets all affectionate with them?"

Emi placed her hands on her hips, "That's right, got a problem with that?"

Fuuto flashed his Cheshire cat smile, "Nope." He walked over to her, ignoring her personal space, he brought his lips to her ear, close enough for her to feel his warm breath as he whispered huskily, "I think I'd like for big sis to get affectionate with me aaaaall the time." Emi felt heat rise to her face. And as Fuuto pulled back he brushed his lips along her face before planting a kiss on her cheek.

Emi stood frozen as Fuuto smirked and walked toward the stairs as he waved to the two of them, "Please take care of me, idiot older sisters!"

Emi would have kicked his ass right then and there had it not been for Ema holding her back.

* * *

After Emi had calmed down, the two girls went back to their rooms to change. Once they were comfortable enough they went back to the fifth floor, hoping to get started on dinner.

Arriving in the kitchen, Emi and Ema saw that Ukyo had returned.

"Welcome home," the two sister said in harmony.

Ukyo blinked in shock as he turned to stare at them in wonder.

The two siblings tilted their heads in worry.

"Is something wrong," Ema asked.

Ukyo snapped out of whatever trance he was in and looked away, slightly embarrassed, "No, excuse me for staring. It's just that it's been quite some time since those words have been spoken to me. It's quite nice."

Emi crossed her arms, "Well that's no good! From this day forward, Ema and I will say that to Ukyo-san, so he never forgets the feeling of hearing those words!"

Ema saluted her older sister and replied with a firm, "Yes, ma'am!"

Ukyo chuckled, "Thank you. Oh and speaking of which, have you two met Fuuto yet?"

Emi's mood immediately turned sour, "You mean that fifteen year old idol who doesn't know the difference between his older sisters and the dirt on the ground? Yeah, I met him, and I'm not impressed."

Ukyo sighed, "What did he do?"

Emi sighed and leaned against Ema dramatically, "What didn't he do? He bruised my pride, crushed my ego, and humiliated me in front of my little sister! I'm ruined!"

Ema gently patted her sister on the shoulder, "Sis, don't be so dramatic."

Emi moved away from Ema, "Oh fine."

Ukyo chuckled, amused at seeing Emi's theatrics for the first time, "So what really happened?"

She leaned on the counter, "Well, when I arrived in the loft, I heard Ema and him talking. I got curious so I hid behind sofa up on the loft. The moment I take a peek over head, Fuuto comes right out and calls Ema an idiot."

Ukyo pinched the bridge of his nose, "Fuuto..."

"So I go down there and get his attention thinking that maybe he'll be respectful if there's another person there, but no, the next words out of his mouth are, 'Oh are you the other idiot older sister?' So that's the moment I've heard enough. So next thing I do, I put him in a headlock."

Ukyo's eyes widened in shock, "You what?"

Emi's voice became more heated, "That's right! You heard me correctly. I put Fuuto in a headlock. Anyway! I dared him to repeat that line again, twice. But he concedes so I let go. Now I didn't want him to hate me after that so I gave him a quick peck on the cheek, you know, sisterly love right?"

Ukyo's cheeks turned rosy pink, "A peck on the cheek?"

Emi continued despite his flushed face, "So then he starts analyzing what kind of sister I am and then he has the nerve to...the nerve to..."

Emi's face turned red at the memory.

Ukyo looked at Ema in question. Ema's face flushed a bit but she answered him, "Fuuto-kun walked up to sis and whispered something in her ear and then...kissed her cheek."

The glasses on Ukyo's face slid down his nose a bit. He quickly pushed them up to the bridge of his nose as he muttered, "Unacceptable! Definitely unacceptable on Fuuto's part!"

Emi sighed, "It's okay Ukyo-san. I'm just glad that Fuuto didn't hate me after what I did to him. I can handle him myself, honestly, I just let my guard down that one time. It won't happen again!"

Ukyo stared at her for a few moments before nodding, "I see. Well, he probably won't be showing his face tomorrow due to work. I told him to come back home for a short time if he could."

Emi and Ema perked their ears at Ukyo's statement. "Tomorrow?" they asked.

The lawyer looked at them guiltily, "Ah, my bad, I haven't told you yet. We were planning to throw a birthday party tomorrow for Subaru."

The two girls looked at each other with glee. Ema put her hands together in delight, "A birthday party? It must be so exciting with so many siblings!"

Emi nodded at her sister's statement.

Ukyo began to work on dinner, "Well, normally we don't go that far, but this year, it's special since Subaru is turning 20."

"Well, if there's anything we can do, please tell us!"

Ukyo looked up at the ceiling in thought and turned to Emi with a smile, "There is something..."

* * *

**The next day**

Emi yawned as she knocked on her sister's door. The older Hinata sister had had a long night yesterday after leaving the Asahina residence. She had arrived at her job early so that she could rehearse with the band that was going to be playing with her that night at the restaurant. After getting on stage and finishing their performance, the owner of the diner introduced her to his friends, some of which owned restaurants of their own. The group had praised her singing, commented on her "wonderful dress choice" and offered her a spot at their table, so that she could dine with them.

Emi had taken the offer graciously and spoke with them well after midnight. Before she left, she was offered another job from one of the restaurant owners, to play in two weeks time. She accepted the offer immediately and thanked the owner for giving her the job.

Once she had returned, it was already four in the morning.

Today, the two girls were going to head into the city to buy ingredients for Subaru's cake. It was around nine in the morning at the moment, as Emi yawned again, waiting for her sister to open the door.

After a few more seconds the young Hinata sibling exited her room and greeted her sister, "Good morning, sis. How did it go last night?"

Emi smiled at her, "Morning. Last night went well. I got to talk with some other joint owners after my performance. I got offered another job."

They began to walk toward the elevator as Ema clasped her hands together, "That's good! You've been getting a lot of job offers lately!"

Emi nodded, "Mhm. I just hope I don't get too many."

Ema tilted her head, "Why not?"

"Well, I've said before. I don't want to go into the singing profession. This is just something that I enjoy doing in my spare time."

The younger sister nodded, "I see."

They both exited the building. Emi decided to switch the conversation to the subject of today's shopping, "So! Subaru's birthday huh?"

Ema happily nodded, "It must be so exciting for him!"

"Hm. I wonder. I'm guessing so, with that many siblings. Actually, speaking of Subaru. I didn't get a chance to ask you yesterday. You seemed a bit tense around him, did something happen?"

Emi saw her sister's cheeks turning pink. The younger sibling turned away but that only allowed Emi to see her little sister's ears turning red.

The elder sister laughed, "Was it something really embarrassing?"

Ema brought her hands together and began to twiddle her thumbs, "A-A bit."

"C'mon Ema. You can tell me."

"Well...it happened the day before yesterday, at night. I was going to take a bath up on the fifth floor, and I hadn't heard anyone so, I went inside, but Subaru-san was...he was..."

Emi gaped at her sister, "You saw his-"

Ema quickly covered her mouth, "N-No! No! Of course not! B-But he only had a towel and I saw his..."

Emi heaved a sigh of relief, "So you only saw his chest, huh?"

"Y-Yes! So, can we stop talking about it now?"

Emi laughed and wound her arm around Ema's shoulders, "It's not like you haven't seen a guys chest before, no? You used to take baths with Dad, right?"

Ema's blush deepened, "You don't have to remind me. Geez!" She nudged her sister with her elbow, as Emi giggled.

The two girls soon arrived in the Akamichi shopping district a few minutes later and started to shop for the ingredients they'd need for Subaru's birthday cake.

* * *

**A/N: And another chapter finished! Hurray! For next chapter, I'm planning to include a bit of Subaru's b-day, but mainly, it'll be Takeshi's meeting with the brothers.**

****** Please tell me your thoughts on this chapter. Emi's talk with her boyfriend? Emi's meeting with Fuuto? Did you think Fuuto was in character? Ukyo's reaction's to Emi retelling of her meeting with Fuuto? The little back and forth with the sisters?**

**Thank you all for reading!**

**-W.W.**


	4. Birthday Party

**Chapter 4: Birthday Party  
**

"This stuff's pretty heavy!"

Emi turned her eyes over to her sister who was setting down her two bulging grocery bags as she sank to the floor and ended up in a squatting position, her elbows set over her knees and her hands holding up her head as she stared up at the sky, almost in wonder.

Emi set down her own large bags next to Ema's and squatted down along with her sister in the same position, a large smile forming on her face as she nodded in agreement with her sister.

Ema sighed, "If Subaru-san were here, he'd have no problem lifting something like this."

The older sister nodded once again, "He's got the physical strength, that's for sure, with all the roadwork and all the other things he does for his club. It's pretty amazing."

The younger sister nodded at the statement.

"They noticed?"

The two girls blinked in surprise and turned their heads to look behind them. Emi squinted down the street suspiciously and then turned to Ema, "Did you hear that?"

Ema cocked her head to the side, "Well, I heard something, but..."

Emi gave one last look down the street and decided that it was probably a passing conversation they'd just heard and stood from her position, "Well, come on. We've got to get back if we want to make the cake on time."

Ema nodded and lifted the heavy bags of the floor, with renewed determination to get back to the house and make a cake worthy of her new brother as soon as possible.

Emi looked behind once more. This time she caught sight of a white jacket poking out from behind a building. The piece of clothing moved as a head popped out from around the corner. Emi grinned at Subaru's surprise. She chuckled when she saw how flushed he looked.

"Sis?"

As Subaru quickly hid behind the corner once again Emi turned around, grin still plastered on her face, and walked toward Ema, "Coming, just thought I dropped something!"

* * *

The two sisters sighed in relief as they set down the bags on the fifth floor hallway.

Once Emi caught her breath, she lifted the bags, ready to take them to the kitchen when she noticed a pair of legs dressed in dark pink pants with blue socks on their feet. Emi lowered the bags again and walked toward the fallen person, Ema walking up behind her when she noticed the persons legs.

It was Louis. Once Emi knew, she knelt next to him. "Louis-san?" She brought her hand to his head, intent on checking for a fever but her hands brushed against his hair and before she knew it she had weaved her hand through his threads gently. She couldn't believe how soft his hair was, almost like silk.

"Louis-san?" She whispered his name softly, not wanting to startle him. Emi trailed her hand to his cheek and patted it a few times saying once again, "Louis-san?"

Ema panicked when he wasn't stirring, so she called to him desperately, "Louis-san! What's wrong?"

Juli squeaked as well, next to Louis's head.

Their worried voices seemed to do the trick as Louis opened his eyes. He stared ahead for a second, quickly taking in his surroundings, then blinked as he sat up and turned his gaze to Emi and Ema, who were staring at him in question, their brows knitted in concern.

"Chi-chan. Mi-chan."

Emi smiled at him, although still confused as to why he would call Ema, Chi, but she was happy that he was okay, and slightly giddy at his nickname for her.

Emi tilted her head and lifted her hand, brushing his hair out of the way as she placed her palm against his forehead, "You seemed to be pretty deep in sleep. Do you have a fever? Do you feel okay?"

Louis smiled at her. He gently pushed her hand away and held it in his own. He looked down as he intertwined his fingers with hers, "I'm fine, Mi-chan. To be honest, I woke up, the moment you came in. And then, you began to stroke my hair, it felt nice. And you were petting my cheek. I was hoping, that Mi-chan wouldn't stop. But Chi-chan got worried, so..."

Emi felt her cheeks heat up at Louis' blunt confession. Ema leaned in closer, "But, are you sure you're alright? You were just sprawled on the floor and I thought..."

Louis looked over at the green couch, his hand still clutching Emi's, "I was planning to sleep, on the sofa, but, I didn't make it."

Ema gave him a small smile, "Have you finished your work?"

He shook his head, "No. If you don't mind, may I arrange your hair?"

"What?" Ema replied.

He looked back and forth at the two sisters, "It's Subaru's birthday. Since there's a party, I want to make you two look even cuter."

Emi smiled, "You really don't need to Louis-san."

The look he gave Emi broke her heart a little. He looked like a kicked puppy and replied to her in a slightly hurt voice, "But, I want to arrange Mi-chan's hair."

She could hardly say no to that face so she gave in and placed her free hand on top of his, saying, "Okay. But do Ema first while I go put away the groceries."

Louis smiled at her and looked over at Ema, "Come on."

* * *

Once Emi had finished putting away everything they purchased, she had walked into the lounge to see Louis working on Ema's hair. He moved his hands across her hair gracefully. He combed through it and added what looked like mousse, and began to braid her hair on one side.

Emi walked to the red sofa and sat down, quietly watching Louis showing his skills.

After ten minutes, Louis picked up the mirror he had brought down and showed Ema her reflection.

Emi saw her sister's eyes widen in amazement. Louis tilted his head, "Is this, good?"

Ema's smile widened, nodding enthusiastically, "Yes, very!"

Louis' face softened at his siblings praise, "That's good." He grabbed a curler, "I'll put on the finishing touches."

He pressed the power button but nothing happened. He looked at it and pressed the button again. It didn't turn on. He looked at it with mild surprise, "Oh? It's not working." He turned to Ema and Emi, "Sorry. I'll go get another one."

Ema held up a hand to stop him, "U-um, this is more than enough, Louis-san."

He turned to her once he was on the stairs, "Let me do this until the end."

Emi stood up from the sofa and went over to him, "Louis-san? I have a curler in my room. You can use it, if you want."

Louis smiled, "If it's not too much trouble, then..."

Emi grinned, "Of course not." She turned to Ema who was sitting in the middle of the lounge, "Ema, stay right there, we'll be back in a bit."

"O-okay."

Emi turned her attention back to Louis and cocked her head over to the hallway, "Let's go."

* * *

Once the two siblings entered the room, Emi quickly went over to the restroom to look for the curler. "You can go ahead and sit down on the bed if you want Louis-san."

Louis did as he was told and walked to her bed and sat down. He looked around the room with wonder. Her bed was neatly made, her pillows fluffed and a small set of animal plushies leaning against the wall. The desk that was across the bed was a soft beige color. On the top shelf were her university books and on the bottom there were some novels, in no particular order. A small cup was on the desk that contained a different variety of pens and pencils. Next to the cup was a desk light with the neck of the lamp seeming like it could be twisted and turned into different positions.

Louis blinked in surprise as he saw a little anime figurine hanging on the neck of the light. Upon seeing the figurine, he finally noticed some of the posters that adorned her room. They were all from popular anime's, some of which Tsubaki and Azusa had voiced.

"I found it!"

Louis snapped out from the trance Emi's room had placed on him as he turned to see her walking out of the bathroom, a triumphant smile plastered on her face, "It was still in the packaging!"

The light haired brother's lips twitched into a small smile, "Let's test it. To see if it works."

Emi nodded and took the plug to the outlet near her desk. A thought suddenly struck Emi and she plugged in the curler, "Hey, Louis-san?"

"What is it, Mi-chan?"

"Well, I've been wondering for a while, but...why do you call Ema, Chi?"

When he didn't reply immediately, Emi turned to see him looking at her in slight shock.

"Louis-san?"

He blinked away the surprise and said in a voice barely above a whisper, "So you can't understand him..."

She tilted her head, "Louis-san?"

He looked up at her, a smile replacing his shocked face, "I thought that Chi sounded cute. I thought about calling her Ma-chan, but I feel like that suits Masa-nii, a lot better."

Emi giggled, "That makes sense. Oh, it seems like the curler works."

Louis noticed the green light that was flashing next to the power button. He nodded and stood up from her bed, "Shall we head back?"

She nodded and began to coil up the wire.

Louis looked around her room one last time, "Mi-chan. I didn't know you liked anime."

She looked up at him, "Huh? Oh! Yes, I do. I hope you weren't too shocked to see my room..."

He smiled at her, "Not shocked, just a bit surprised." He then dropped his head and mumbled, "But now Tsubaki-nii and Azusa-nii are ahead of me."

She tilted her head, "What did you say?"

He smiled and offered his hand towards her, "Nothing, let's head back. I need a bit more time to do your hair, Mi-chan."

She took his hand, "To tell you the truth, I'm a bit excited to see what you'll do with it."

Louis intertwined his fingers with hers as he lead her out of her room, "Don't worry. When I'm done, Mi-chan will look even more beautiful."

Emi looked down at their interlocked hands as she replied, "I'm not worried. From now on, I think I'll only let Louis-san do my hair."

Louis stopped in his tracks. Emi didn't expect the sudden halt and bumped into his back. "S-sorry."

The hair stylist slowly turned to her. Emi wondered if she had said something wrong. She was taken by surprise when Louis suddenly hugged her. She hesitantly brought her hands up to his back, "L-Louis-san?"

"Sorry, Mi-chan. It's just, what you said right now, it made me very happy."

She smiled and hugged him back in earnest, "Then, it's settled. Louis-san is the only person who can do my hair and make me pretty."

She felt Louis tighten his hold on her. He moved one of his hands away from her back and placed it on her head, bringing his own cheek to rest on top as he began to stroke her hair, his fingers weaving through her brown locks, "Mi-chan, you're already pretty."

Emi's face began to heat up at his compliment, but Louis didn't seem to notice her embarrassment and continued, "I'm only helping you _bring out_ your beauty."

A swell of affection came over Emi as she hugged Louis tighter, her head buried in his chest as the next words escaped her mouth, "Thank you, Louis-nii."

Louis's body went rigid for a few seconds before gently pushing Emi away at arms length. His hands cupped her face and forced her to look up at him. Emi was taken aback at the look that Louis was giving her. It was a mix of happiness and adoration. His smile was so serene, his eyes softening, showing a warmth that ran deep into his soul as he gazed at her. All of a sudden, the distance between them vanished as Emi felt Louis's warm lips on her forehead.

Emi's breath left her. She couldn't find her voice. The contact felt like it had lasted forever and yet it was only for a few seconds until Louis pulled away, smile still firmly placed on his face, "We shouldn't keep Chi-chan waiting."

He turned, making sure to grab hold of Emi's hand once again, and walked ahead toward the elevator. Emi was left to trail behind him, her heart racing and her thoughts in complete disarray.

* * *

Once the two had made their way back to the lounge, Louis quickly set to work, determined to finish Ema's hair and start on Emi's. Once he finished with the younger sister, Emi told her to begin preparing the cake.

Before Emi knew it, her hair was combed and curled into perfection. Looking into the mirror, she could see that Louis styled her hair almost exactly like Ema's, only that the braid was on the other side of her head. She thanked Louis, hugging him around the waist before heading into the kitchen to help Ema.

The two girls quickly set to work on the cake. It was well into the night when the cake was finally finished. Emi huffed in triumph and looked over at Ema, "I say we did pretty good."

Ema smiled at her sister's comment, "I think so too. Should I go call everyone?"

Emi nodded, "Go ahead."

A few moments later, the brothers filed in. Subaru stepped away to sit on the couch, while everyone else crowded around the cake.

Wataru was the first to comment, "Wow! The cake is so big!"

Tsubaki smiled and nodded, "It looks delicious!"

Kaname gave the two sisters a sultry smile, "You did great, my cute little sisters."

Ukyo flashed Kaname a warning glare before smiling at Emi and Ema, "It's a magnificent creation."

Iori nodded and smiled at them, "It's seems almost like a waste to eat it."

Ema and Emi were both blushing at the stream of compliments. Ema clasped her hands together and looked down at the counter-top in slight embarrassment, "Th-Thank you very much."

The thirteenth Asahina son piped up again, "Amazing! It's really, really amazing!"

Masaomi walked up to Wataru and bent to his eye level, "Wataru. This is something the your big sisters made for Subaru. Wataru shouldn't be happier than Subaru, okay?"

Wataru looked down at the ground slightly deflated, "I see..." He looked up and walked to where Subaru was seated and bowed to him, "I'm sorry, Subaru."

Subaru smiled at his kid brother and placed his hand on his head.

The two sisters smiled at the display. Ema looked over at her sister, "Having siblings is so nice."

Emi smiled down at her younger sister and nodded. "Wataru-chan," Emi called to the boy. He turned to his sisters call. "When it's your birthday, Ema and I are gonna make a cake that's just as big as Subaru-kun's!"

The little boy smiled widely and jumped in the air, "Yay!"

Yusuke looked at the cake, "You...You two made it? On your own?"

Emi looked over at her red-headed brother. A small smirk formed on her lips. Yusuke had asked them both, but she felt that he was far more interested in Ema's involvement than her own. Emi smiled at him, "Yup, Ema helped out a whole bunch! She's so great at decorating, isn't she?"

He looked up at Ema, "For Suba-nii...you..."

Ema tilted her head, "Hm?"

"I...can't eat this."

"Why? Do you not like cake?"

"No, that's not it! You made it, and I would feel bad _not _eating it, and I _want _to eat it, but somehow...I can't eat this."

Emi looked away for a moment, for fear that she was going to burst out in laughter. It was too adorable how transparent Yusuke was with his feelings for Ema, it was a wonder how her sister didn't know yet.

Tsubaki, sensing an opportunity to tease his younger brother, waltzed over to Yusuke's side and leaned against him, "Ah, I see. Yusuke can't eat it, so I'll have your part of it as well!"

Yusuke's eyes widened, "Eh!?"

Tsubaki leaned over toward the two sisters, "After all, it's a cake that was made with all of our sisters affections! I feel like I can eat the whole thing!"

"H-hey, Tsuba-nii!"

The white-haired older brother smirked at Ema and Emi, "Ah, I would be extremely happy if you fed me. Do it, do it!"

Ema hesitated in her reply, "Um..."

Tsubaki took his chance, "Or do _you _prefer being the one's that are fed?"

He stretched his hand into the bowl of strawberries and plucked two out and placed one of them in his other hand, "I'm fine with that as well, " he said huskily and brought the strawberries near the two sisters mouth's, "Here, say 'Ah!'"

Azusa quickly shoved Tsubaki away, "Alright, let's leave it there, Tsubaki."

The oldest twin smiled, "Okay~!" He looked over at the sofa where Subaru was at, "But, it seems like the person who the cake is for, isn't too happy."

Subaru flinched at the statement, "That's not..."

All the siblings looked at him in question.

"Subaru-san," Ema questioned, worriedly.

Kaname place his hand on her shoulder, "It's alright. He's not sick. Wait, maybe he is."

Emi looked up at the hazel-eyed monk, who had placed himself in between the two girls. He turned his gaze to the elder sister, "One even a doctor can't cure. I, too have this sickness."

He wound his arms around Emi and pulled her close to him, "If I could, I would prefer to suffer from this illness."

Emi looked at him, slightly bewildered, "Uh..."

"You're bothering her, big brother Kaname."

Iori took hold of Kaname's hand that had been holding Emi. The two brothers stared at each other for a few moments, before Kaname stood back and conceded, "Sorry about that, Emi-chan."

"It's okay," Emi said, still slightly confused about what had just happened.

Iori looked at the two sisters, "May I ask why you two changed your hairstyle?"

Emi touched her hair, having forgotten that Louis had worked on it. Ema replied, "Louis-san did this for us. He said that it was 'for the party.'"

"So it's like that...it really suits the both of you."

Ema looked away shyly, "Thank you very much."

Emi smiled proudly, "Thanks, Iori-kun."

* * *

The siblings sat around the table. Emi was the only one who remained standing as she brought the cake over to Subaru who was at the head of the table. Once she set it down, she walked over the her seat that was the farthest from Subaru, next to Kaname.

Ukyo smiled at everyone at the table, "Now, let's have Subaru blow out the candles."

Subaru stared at the candles hesitantly, "Are we seriously doing this?"

Ukyo's voice brokered no argument, "Yes."

Subaru sighed in defeat.

"I'll be taking a picture!" Ema said excitedly.

"Me too!" Emi said after her.

Subaru tensed his shoulders and blew the candles.

Congratulations sounded throughout the table and the lights were turned on. Emi got up and helped Masaomi with distributing the cake.

Wataru was the first, as Emi had continuously witnessed, to comment on the cake, "So yummy~! My big sisters cake is the best in the world!"

Tsubaki nodded in agreement after he took a bite, "The best!" He looked over at Yusuke, who had yet to touch his piece, "Hey Yusuke, if you aren't eating it, I really will eat yours~."

Yusuke's indecision ended at that comment as he yelled, "I'll eat it!"

He cut a small piece and ate it. A few seconds later he suddenly shouted, "Tastes good!"

The brothers all began to laugh at his outburst. Emi giggled and clicked the shutter button.

After finishing her cake and taking a few more photo's from her seat at the table, she turned to Kaname.

"Kaname-san?"

He turned his hazel eyes toward her, "Yes, my dear Emi-chan?"

She was inclined to blush at his endearment toward her but she quickly hid her embarrassment buy grinning and holding up her camera, "Mind taking a picture with me?"

In response, Kaname scoot his chair closer to her and brought his lips next to her ear as he whispered, "You don't mind if I hug you, right, Emi-chan?"

Emi stared at him from the corner of her eye and began to feel her ears burn. She knew the game he was playing and she was determined not to fall for his playboy charms, so she did the only thing she knew she could in that situation.

Emi brought her hand under his chin and turned it as she brought up the camera. Right before pushing down the shutter button she squished his cheeks together with her hand and smiled while sticking out her tongue in the direction of the lens. A click was heard from the camera.

She dropped her hand from his chin and looked down at the picture that was taken. Kaname's eyes had widened in surprise and were directed at his puckered lips, giving him a cross eyed look.

Emi stood from her seat, smirking at Kaname and turned the camera so that he could see the photo.

"Nice try, Kaname-san, but it looks like I win."

The blond monk stared at the shot in bewilderment for a few seconds but soon he was smiling, "It seems my charms won't work on you, huh?"

"Not in the least," she said as she walked away and headed toward Wataru and Masaomi.

At her approach, Wataru waved his fork at her, "Big sis, I love your cake so much! You and sissy are amazing!"

Emi grinned, "Thank you Wataru-chan! Just imagine, when it's your birthday, it'll taste ten times better!"

He threw his hands in the air, "I can't wait for my birthday to come!"

Emi smiled and ruffled his hair, then turned her attention to Masaomi, "Do you mind taking a picture with me?"

The brunet doctor smiled warmly at her, "Of course not."

She grinned and took hold of Wataru's arm, "Come on, Wataru-chan."

The little boy happily let his sister drag him next to Masaomi who was still seated. He made a move to stand but Emi placed her hand on his shoulder, "You don't need to get up. You and Wataru-chan are the same height when you're seated."

He chuckled as she readied the camera and bent down to match Wataru's level.

Wataru hugged his sister around the neck, his cheek touching hers. Emi smiled widely and looked over at Masaomi, who was looking at his knees timidly. She giggled softly and touched his hand. The first son stared at her hand in shock and then turned his chocolate eyes up to her's. She smiled and whispered softly to him, "Come here."

She hooked her free hand around his neck and brought his cheek to hers, just like Wataru had.

"Cheese!" Wataru exclaimed and Emi took the picture.

"Let me see! I want to see!" Emi laughed as she released Masaomi from her hold and checked the photo. She angled the camera so that Wataru could see.

"Big sis looks super pretty! Ah! Makkun's face is completely red!"

"Wa-Wataru!" Masaomi tried to shush his younger brother, but Emi's attention was already focused on Masaomi. Wataru was right. Masaomi's face was completely flushed. His smile was small, but sincere and his eyes were looking in her direction.

"No fair~! I want a picture with Emi-chan too!"

Emi's stare was broken at the sound of Tsubaki's voice. She looked over her shoulder to see him standing there with Azusa by his side, Masaomi and Wataru now forgotten at her side.

She smiled brightly at his request. "Oh! Of course! Come closer!"

The twins promptly sandwiched her between them and lay their heads on her shoulders. She was slightly taken aback by their enthusiasm, but she managed to lift the camera and take the shot.

Emi could practically feel the grin that Tsubaki was giving her as he said, "Is that okay, or would you like to take another one with us~?"

She glanced at the photo for a few seconds and nodded in content, "It's perfect."

Tsubaki pouted, "Aw. I was hoping to take another one with you~."

Azusa steered his brother away, "Now, Tsubaki. Emi-chan has other people to take pictures with."

The elder sister laughed at the twins dynamic. Perhaps she'd grant Tsubaki's request some other time. She turned her attention to Iori and Ukyo who were eating their cake in silence, but listening in on the different conversations going on.

She walked around to the other side of the table, "Iori-kun? Ukyo-san?"

The two men smiled in her direction, with Ukyo responding, "What is it Emi-chan?"

She wiggled the device in her hand, "Do you mind?"

The two of them shook their heads. Emi beamed at them as they both stood from their seats. Once again, she positioned herself in the middle. Iori and Ukyo both leaned down, though not as close as the twins or Kaname had been, and smiled at the lens of the camera.

After taking the picture she looked at the two brothers, "Thanks! Are you two enjoying the cake?"

The two brothers went back to their seats, nodding, but it was Iori who responded, "It's delicious. I heard that you want to open a bakery?"

Emi smiled, "Yeah. I've been studying up on business and taking some classes for baking."

Ukyo took a bite out of his piece of cake, "I'm sure it won't be long until you're out searching for a place to set up shop."

She scratched the back of her head and smiled shyly, "I sure hope so."

"Emi-chan~!"

She looked up at the sound of her name. Tsubaki was motioning for her to come over. She excused herself from Ukyo and Iori and headed over to Tsubaki who was next to Yusuke and Subaru.

"Emi-chan, you haven't taken a picture with Yusuke and Subaru yet right?"

Yusuke and Subaru looked up at Tsubaki in slight horror as they both stuttered, "P-Picture?"

Emi smiled at them, "Uh-huh. I'm taking a picture with everyone! So come on, stand up. Tsubaki-san, do you mind taking it?"

He gladly took the camera from her, "No problem~! Alright, Subaru, Yusuke, get up."

The two boys grumbled under their breath but listened to their older brother. Both stood at arm's length from Emi. Tsubaki pouted at their behavior and called them out on it, "Come on, you two! What kind of family photo is that?"

Emi saw their cheeks redden. A small smile spread across her lips as she spoke to the two of them softly, "I'm sorry guys. I don't want to pressure you if you don't want to. Maybe some other time, okay?"

Subaru and Yusuke looked at her in surprise. Seeing Emi's sad smile sent a sharp pain across the two brothers' chest. They hadn't meant to hurt her in any way, they just weren't used to many family pictures.

Yusuke was the first to steel himself as he closed the distance between them. He grabbed her shoulder and pulled her to his side, his face growing warmer as he stuttered, "I-It's okay. W-We'll just do it right now, right, Suba-nii?"

Subaru looked down at Emi, his eyes filled with resolve, as he, too, went over to Emi's side and put his arm around her shoulder.

Tsubaki smirked, "Now, you two just need to smile~!"

Emi giggled softly. Tsubaki began to count down, "Three, two, one, cheese~!"

The white haired twin clicked the shutter button. Once Tsubaki lowered the camera Emi quickly wound her arms around Subaru's and Yusuke's waists and squeezed them close, "Thank you guys." The two of them, still slightly several shades of red, nodded in response and returned to their seats without another word. Tsubaki returned her camera. "So, when's the boyfriend coming over?"

The question grabbed everyone's attention. Ema looked at her sister, "Takeshi-san is coming over?"

Emi nodded to her, "Yeah. The day you had fainted was when I told everyone about him." She turned her attention back to her brothers, "Takeshi said he was free on Thursday. Are any of you free that day?"

Masaomi was the first to answer, "I'll be here during the day."

Ukyo had risen from his seat and made his way over to the white board behind the kitchen counter. "I have a case in the morning that day, but I'm sure to be out by noon. Tsubaki and Azusa have the day off. Louis also does too, that's a bit of a surprise, he usually works on weekdays. Subaru has a morning class, so he'll be here a little before noon. Kaname, you're sure to take the day off. Iori, Yusuke, and Wataru have school that day. Oh! It seems Fuuto will have the day off as well."

Emi wasn't sure how to react to the last statement but she was happy enough knowing that most of her brothers would be able to meet Takeshi. She brought her hands together in delight, "So Thursday it is, right?"

The family of brothers nodded. There was one however who didn't seem too happy about the arrangement, "Aww! I want to see big sis' boyfriend! I don't wanna go to school!"

Emi smiled at her youngest brother, "Wataru-chan."

He turned to her. She waved him over, "Come here."

He silently did as he was told. He rose from his chair and bounded up toward his sister, "Yes?"

She knelt down to face him eye to eye, "I'll make sure to invite him over some other day when you don't have school. Does that sound good to you?"

His pout transformed into a grin, "Yup!"

Emi ruffled his hair, "Alright. Now!" She hoisted herself up and looked to everyone at the table, "Okay. If everyone's done with cake, it's time for presents!"

* * *

**A/N: I'm so sorry for the late update! My whole family got the flu, including me, so I've been resting as much as possible AND classes are back in session so that's a double wham-y! Please forgive me! I sincerely apologize for being so late!  
**

**So, I kinda lied about this chapter having Takeshi's visit but I decided to extended Subaru's birthday so that Emi could have a bit more interaction with the brothers. I just have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed writing her interaction with Louis, he is so freakin ADORABLE! And some of my readers wanted more Louis in here so there you have it Louis fangirls ;)**

**Alright! Review time! What did you think about Emi's interaction with Louis? Did you like how she handled Kaname? Who do you think Subaru likes at this point, Emi or Ema? I can't believe I didn't ask this before but who do you want Ema to end up with? Personally, I'm a Yusuke/Ema shipper but if many of you want her with someone else (looking at you Natsume/Ema fans!) please, please, please, tell me. I want to engage with my readers more, so I need your opinions. Finally! Any thoughts or predictions on how the brothers will behave around Takeshi?**

**Thank you for reading! I'll try to get the next chapter up quicker than this one!**

**-W.W.**


	5. The Boyfriend Bash

**Chapter 5: The Boyfriend Bash  
**

Emi stretched under the covers of her bed and sighed contentedly as she brought her arms back under the warmth of her sheets. She opened her eyes slowly.

Today was the day Takeshi would be coming over to her home and meeting her brothers. She felt butterflies in her stomach at the thought of what the day might bring. She was hoping for Takeshi to make a good impression on her brothers and for her brothers to treat him nicely and not interrogate him the first chance they got. Tsubaki's mischievous smile had alerted her to that possibility so she was a bit worried for Takeshi's sake.

Emi shook her head to rid herself of the worrying thoughts and looked over to the clock that hung on her wall. It was a few minutes past five thirty. Nobody besides Ukyo was up at this hour. Breathing in deeply, Emi rose from her bed and headed toward the restroom for a quick shower.

After ten minutes she exited her room and headed toward the fifth floor.

She quickly made her way toward the kitchen and sure enough, she saw Ukyo dressed and working on breakfast.

"Good morning."

He turned his head to look over his shoulder, "Ah. Good morning, Emi-chan."

She jumped down the last two steps of the stairs and walked toward him, "Will you be leaving soon for your case soon?"

"Yes, I just need to finish up with breakfast. Would you mind helping me out?"

"Not at all."

The two set to work. Thirty minutes had passed before they finished. Ukyo immediately began to set up the table while Emi stayed behind the counter. When he returned to her side, he noticed that she had taken out four old bento boxes that had been stashed away in one of the cupboards. She was neatly setting the food inside.

"Emi-chan?"

She looked up at him with a smile, "Yes?"

He looked down at the bento's, silently questioning her actions. She giggled, "I thought, since Wataru-chan, Iori-kun, Yusuke-kun, and Ema won't be here to see Takeshi, this is a good way to make up for it. Especially for Wataru-chan."

His face softened, "Truly a wonderful idea. I'm sure they'll appreciate the thought."

Her face brightened, "You think so!?"

He nodded and continued to set up the rest of the table.

Just as Ukyo and Emi finished their tasks, Ema had walked down the kitchen stairs and greeted them, with Yusuke, Wataru, Subaru and Iori trailing behind her.

As they began to eat their breakfast, Ukyo pulled on the coat that he had set aside at the end of the dining table and picked up his briefcase, walking toward the stairs, "Well, I'll be heading out right now. I'll be back before noon."

Emi waved at him, "Take care, and good luck!"

He smiled at her before ascending to the top of the stairs. Once he was out of sight, Emi turned her attention to washing the dishes. A few minutes passed when Subaru stood from his seat, taking his dishes over to Emi. She took them from him and as he was beginning to turn away she called to him, "Subaru-kun?"

He turned his head, "Yes?"

Emi wiped her hands on the towel that was above the sink and walked over to one of the cupboards, opening it slightly and sticking her hand in briefly before taking it out. In her hand was a melon bread wrapped in plastic. She handed it over to him, "Here, just in case you get hungry on the way back."

He looked down at it, his cheeks slowly turning a light shade of pink, "Th-Thank you."

She grinned, "I bought them for you, so take one whenever you want okay? You need all the energy you can get."

"Y-Yeah."

"Well!" She turned him around and pushed him toward the stairs, "You'd better hurry up if you don't want to be late!"

He stumbled as he reached the stairs, "Right." He looked over at her, slightly flustered at his next words, "I-I'm off."

She grinned, "Take care!"

He ran up the stairs without another look back. Emi giggled into her hand as she turned back and headed toward the sink. After a few moments the next person to rise was Iori. He too headed toward her to hand in his plate. Just as she did with Subaru, she called for his attention.

He tilted his head in question.

Emi took hold of a gray-blue plaid patterned handkerchief wrapped around a bento box and handed him the small package, "Here."

Iori looked at the wrapped bento with masked awe. His hazel eyes looked up at her in disbelief. His jaw hanging slightly open.

She smiled, "For you, Iori-kun. It's _your _bento."

"Thank you. I...I don't know what to say."

"Just let me know what you thought about it. I wasn't really sure what you'd like so..."

He smiled down at her, "I'll be sure to let you know." He headed toward the stairs, "I'm off."

She wiggled her fingers at him, "Take care."

As he was going up the stairs, Wataru, Yusuke, and Ema had left their seats and brought their plates to Emi. Wataru looked over at Iori's retreating figure in envy, "No fair. I want to eat big sis' bento!"

She quickly took their plates, "Have no fear Wataru-chan. I made some for all of you!"

His face brightened while Yusuke tilted his head in confusion as he pointed at himself, "Eh!? Me too?"

Emi raised an eyebrow at him, "Is there a reason why I wouldn't?"

"W-Well. I mean, I can buy myself something to eat over there."

She placed her hands on her hips, "Oh, no. Ema told me about this so-called 'lunch' that you buy over at school. Just bread from the store. That's not healthy for you Yusuke-kun!"

Yusuke looked over at Ema, "Why would you tell her?"

She looked down at her hands guiltily. Emi stepped forward and took hold of the bento that were resting on the counter. She handed the red polka-dotted one to Ema and the pink-purple one to Wataru. She handed the red one to Yusuke, "She was worried about you, Yusuke-kun. I wouldn't have had this idea had she not told me about your diet."

The red head looked down at Ema, "Y-You were worried about me?"

Ema nodded at him, "You should eat properly Yusuke-kun. Sis offered to make bento's for us."

He looked up at the two sisters, his eyes rested on Emi, "You didn't have to..."

She grinned, "It's okay, Yusuke-kun. I wanted to."

He bowed his head, "Th-Thanks...s-sis."

She smiled at him fondly and reached up to pat his head, "Just make sure to eat it all, okay?"

He nodded and turned to run up the stairs, his face hidden behind his hair, "See ya!"

Ema, Wataru, and Emi chuckled at Yusuke's retreat. The two younger siblings looked at their older sister.

"Thanks big sis!" Wataru brought the bento close to his chest as he wound his arm around her waist in a one-armed hug.

Ema smiled at Emi, "Yeah. Thanks, sis."

Emi hugged Wataru back and smiled at her sister, "No problem! I'd love to do it every morning for you guys when I have the time."

Wataru looked up at her, his eyes alight, "Really sis?!"

She laughed, "Yeah, really. But we'll talk about it later. You two should head over to school now."

The two younger siblings laughed and turned toward the stairs, "We'll see you later!"

She saw them off with a smile and once they were gone, she went over to the sink to finish cleaning the dishes.

* * *

Emi paced nervously in the lounge, her phone in hand. Masaomi, who had woken up some time ago, smiled softly at her nervous state from his seat on the sofa.

It was a few minutes past ten o'clock and in that time since Emi had finished washing the dishes, she had gone to Louis for a hair-styling appointment. He gladly fixed up her hair again, similar to how he had done it on Subaru's birthday. After the hair styling session, she went back up to the fifth floor and found Masaomi looking through a few papers in the lounge with a cup of coffee in hand. That was the moment she had received a text from Takeshi. He had informed her that he would be arriving around ten thirty and that he'd give her a call once he was outside the building. After reading through the message, Emi had begun pacing.

Masaomi called to her, "Emi-chan."

His soft yet firm voice broke her out of her frenzied mind. She turned her head to the eldest Asahina brother and answered him softly, "Yes?"

He gently patted the space next to him, "Come sit down. You're making me nervous."

Her head hung low in embarrassment as she walked toward him, "Sorry."

Once she sat down, Masaomi brought his hand to her shoulder and squeezed slightly, "It'll be fine. If Tsubaki goes overboard, Azusa will be sure to stop him."

A nervous chuckle escaped her lips, "Well, I'm not too worried about that. I just..."

He tilted his head, "What is it?"

"It's just that...I want you guys to like him. And I want him to like you guys too. I'm just a bit worried that one of you won't approve...or something like that."

Masaomi's eyes looked down at the stack of papers on the table. He stared blankly at them for a few moments before turning his attention back to Emi, "I'm sure it won't come to that Emi-chan. From the way you've talked about him, he seems like a nice guy."

She smiled, "Really?"

"Really."

A small tune began to chime as Emi and Masaomi looked down at the phone in her hand. It was ten thirty. Emi looked at the caller. It was Takeshi.

She quickly picked up the call and answered, "Takeshi?"

"_Emi-tan?_"

"Yeah! You here?"

"_Yup, I'm out in front. Battle armor and all._"

She giggled, "I'll be right out."

"_Come quickly, sweet Juliet!_"

She stiffled a laugh as she hung up. She turned to Masaomi, "I'm going down to get him."

He nodded and stood from his seat, "I'll go call down the others."

* * *

Once Emi was on the first floor, she quickly bounded toward the entrance. She hadn't seen Takeshi for almost three weeks. Outside, she caught sight of him leaning against the wall. He was dressed in loose jeans and a simple T-shirt that fit against his frame snugly.

"Takeshi!"

His messy black head turned to her. The moment he saw her, he spread his arms dramatically and called, "Juliet!"

Emi laughed and ran forward to embraced him. He hugged her close, nuzzling the top of her head.

Anxious to get him inside, she broke the hug and looked up at him, "Let's head inside."

He smiled and nodded, taking hold of her hand. His free arm charged forward as he deepened his voice slightly, "To the Temple of Doom!"

She giggled. Once they were inside, they took off their shoes and headed toward the elevator. Takeshi looked down at her, "You look great with that new hair-do."

She smiled, "So you noticed."

He pouted, "Of course I did! How could I not!" He paused as he looked her over once more, "Has your hair always been that shade of brown?"

She slapped his arm softly, smile still firmly in place, "Anyway. One of the brothers, Louis, did my hair."

Takeshi blinked in surprise, "He's a hair-stylist?"

She nodded excitedly, "Yup. He's amazing. I feel so at ease when he works on my hair."

The raven haired man brought a hand up to his own hair and pulled a few strands over his forehead so that his eyes were looking down at his locks, cross-eyed. "Do you think he could help me with this birds nest here?"

She smiled up at him and ruffled his hair, "I'd rather he not touch your hair. I like it that way."

His eyes looked down at her in mild surprise. He then flipped his hair, a smug smile appearing across his lips, "I thought so."

Emi rolled her eyes, her smile never leaving her face, "Whatever you say, Romeo."

The elevator came to a halt once they were on the fifth floor. As they stepped off, Takeshi placed a hand over his heart and said in a mock hurt voice, "Oh, Juliet, how you wound me so. Such a cruel woman you are to treat me this way!"

She giggled again and took hold of his hand once more as she lead him down the small hallway and into the loft. The two turned toward the staircase on the right. From the top Emi could see that the twins, Kaname, Louis, and Masaomi were already seated and waiting patiently, a tray of tea set on the table. Fuuto wasn't there.

Emi took in a deep breath and called to the brothers, "Everyone."

The brothers all looked up at the two figures coming down the stairs. They stood up as Emi and Takeshi came closer.

Emi let go of Takeshi's hand, "This is Takeshi. Takeshi, from the left is Tsubaki-san and Azusa-san, the twins."

Azusa was the first to stretch his hand toward Takeshi, "Nice to meet you Takeshi-kun, we've heard a lot about you from Emi-chan."

Takeshi shook his hand, "Same here."

Tsubaki then took hold of his hand after Azusa let go, "I hope she spoke well of us."

Takeshi grinned, "Frankly, I think she spoke too well about all of you. I got a bit jealous."

Emi's face was warm but she continued the introductions, "This is Kaname-san and Masaomi-san."

Takeshi shook Kaname's hand, "Ah, the monk and the doctor, right?"

Kaname shook his hand firmly, "That's right."

Masaomi smiled, "Nice to meet you Takeshi-kun. Here!"

An orange flavored lollipop was shoved into Takeshi's mouth. Emi looked away, trying to stifle her laughter. Takeshi looked down at the lollipop cross-eyed and then back to the brown haired brother, "This is pretty good, can I have another?"

Masaomi chuckled and handed him a grape flavored lollipop. Takeshi looked over at Emi with childish excitement flaring in his eyes. Emi smiled and shook her head as she pointed to the last brother present, "Lastly, we have Louis-san."

Takeshi turned to the long haired male, "You're the one who did Emi's hair!"

The mauve eyed brother nodded, "Mm. Did you, like it?"

He nodded rapidly, "She looks great."

Louis shook his hand, "I'm glad."

Emi was about to invite them all to sit down when a voice caught their attention from the loft, "So this is big sis' boyfriend, huh?"

Everyone turned to look up at Fuuto who was leaning against the railing. Kaname called up to him, "Fuu-chan, come down and say hello."

Fuuto's eye twitched at the name but he did as he was told. He walked closer to Takeshi, eyeing him like predator would with its prey. Takeshi looked at Emi for guidance. She saw his plea for help and took a step forward, "Fuuto-kun, this is my boyfriend, Takeshi."

Fuuto's eyes slid from Takeshi to Emi. She stared him down but Fuuto looked back at Takeshi, "Hmm. How plain."

Takeshi blinked in shock at his bluntness. Emi's fists clenched, "Fuuto..."

He looked at her again and scoffed, "He suits you sis. Plain and boring, just like you."

Masaomi, Azusa, and Louis seemed to be the only ones bothered by his comment as they stood and called to him, "Fuuto!"

The young idol gave them a scathing glare and turned around back toward the stairs, "I'm heading back to my room. It was nice to meet you, Takashi-san."

Takeshi sighed softly and called, "It's _Takeshi_, actually."

"Whatever," was the boy's reply.

As he disappeared up the stairs, Emi looked over at the rest of her brothers, "Excuse me a moment. I'm gonna have a word with him."

Takeshi tried to stop her, "Emi-tan, it's okay-"

She turned back to him, "No, Takeshi. I don't care if he picks on me or patronizes me, but he has absolutely _no _right to give you that attitude."

And with that she raced to catch up to her fifteen year old brother.

Takeshi sighed.

"I'm really sorry about that Takeshi-kun."

The hazel eyed man turned his attention to Masaomi, who was pouring him a cup of tea. Louis moved over to make a space for him. Takeshi gratefully sat down and took the cup with a small thanks toward the doctor, "It's okay. I honestly didn't expect any of you to like me. I was mentally preparing myself for all of you to kick me out and threaten to kill me if I ever looked at your sister again."

Kaname looked up at him, "And would you stay away from her if we told you to?"

The four other brothers turned to the blond in surprise. Takeshi stared down at his tea for a few moments before locking his eyes on Kaname's and replied, "No."

The two of them stared at each other for a few more moments before Kaname conceded and drank deeply from his own cup of tea.

"So, Takeshi-kun."

He turned to look up at the white-haired twin, "Yes, Tsubaki-san?"

"Let's be honest, you're a handsome guy, no doubt about that."

Takeshi's brow rose slightly at the statement, "Uhh..."

"You could get any girl you want, so why Emi-chan?"

He answered immediately, "Well, Emi's such a nice girl. A bit of a mother hen, but she's got her heart in the right place. You guys know about her job right?"

The brothers nodded.

"She's such a talented singer, and she's pretty good at playing the guitar, but she doesn't go around flaunting that talent. Instead of wanting to be famous, she'd rather open up a bakery. She's different from other girls, and I guess that's what really attracted me to her. And she's really pretty of course. I like that she doesn't go crazy on make-up and stuff like that. Her natural beauty is the best. There's just nothing about Emi that I don't like."

Tsubaki stared at him a while longer, his mind processing Takeshi's confession, but he soon nodded, accepting the answer without another word.

Masaomi clapped his hands once to get everyone's attention, "So, Takeshi-kun, where is it that you work?"

"Oh, I work at a karaoke club in Shinjuku. You've heard of Big Echo right?"

The brothers nodded in response. Azusa reached out for his tea, "Do you enjoy working there?"

"Hmm. Well yeah. All you need is a lot of energy to keep up with the customers. I've made a lot of friends there."

Louis chimed in, "Is there, anything else you do? Do you, still go to school?"

Takeshi nodded, "Yeah, I'm like Emi. Part-time student."

Kaname raised an eyebrow, "What are you studying?"

"Music mostly. I'm thinking of becoming a music teacher."

Azusa gave him a small smirk, "Quite fitting, since you work at a karaoke club."

Takeshi scratched the back of his neck with a small laugh, "I thought so as well."

Tsubaki looked over toward the loft, "What's taking Emi-chan so long. Did she decide to kill Fuuto?"

Masaomi glared at the oldest twin, "Tsubaki."

The white haired brother held up his hands in defense, "Just kidding. But she's taking a long time."

Louis checked his phone, "It's eleven forty. Perhaps, Ukyo-nii and Sabaru are back?"

Kaname snapped his fingers, "That's right! She's probably briefing them on what's happened."

* * *

**Twenty minutes earlier**

Emi stomped angrily down the hallway toward Fuuto's room and knocked on the door with more force than was necessary.

She heard his footsteps shuffle toward the door a moment before it opened.

He rolled his eyes at the sight of her but leaned his shoulder on the frame of the door, "What do you want, idiot sister?"

That was the last straw. Before Fuuto knew it, Emi had pulled her hand back and brought it down full force into his cheek. The force of the slap sent him stumbling back. A stinging pain began to grow on the injured cheek. Fuuto's mind was still trying to comprehend what had just happened when Emi's hand pulled at his collar, forcing him to look at her.

She was angry, far more than when they had first met.

"How _dare _you."

Her voice sent a chill down Fuuto's spine. Her statement snapped him out of his daze. In the few weeks he had been gone, he had grown a few more inches, and was now able to stand above his elder sister.

"Me?!" He asked, angry at what she had just done to him, "You just _slapped_ me!"

"Yeah, and it's getting really hard to stop myself from doing it again! I mean, what the _hell_ is your problem?! Make fun of me all you want, but how _dare _you insult Takeshi like that. Do you have _any _respect for anyone older than you?!"

He swatted away her hands from his shirt, "Are you blind? Do you really trust him?"

Emi, who was about to let out another onslaught of accusations, blinked and halted at his question. "What are you talking about? This isn't about trusting him!"

He rolled his eyes, "You really are blind. Poor big sis is getting played."

As he was about to turn away, Emi grabbed hold of his shirt again, "_What_ are you talking about?"

He looked down at her, "Are you sure your boyfriend is who he says he is?"

Her eyebrows knit in confusion, "I know exactly who Takeshi is! You just met him, how could you know anything about him that I don't?"

He scoffed and inched his face close to hers, staring at her straight in the eyes, "Here's something you don't know about me; I'm training to become an actor. I can tell when someone's playing a role or not, and your '_boyfriend'_ was definitely acting."

Emi was about to ask him to explain when the elevator opened to show Subaru and Ukyo, looking at them in question.

Fuuto gave them a look and closed his door making sure to lock the door loudly.

Emi glared at the door but walked over to the elevator, where Ukyo was holding it open for her.

"Are you okay?"

She looked up at Subaru, who was looking down at her in concern. She exhaled deeply, "Yeah, I'm fine, Subaru-kun."

"May I ask what you and Fuuto were fighting about?"

Her attention turned to Ukyo. Her arms crossed over her chest, remembering what he had done only minutes ago, "He insulted Takeshi, in his face."

Ukyo's eyes widened, "What?"

She pinched the bridge of her nose, "I don't know what's come over him. I mean, he insulted me when we first met but I could tell he was joking around. But today...he wasn't joking at all. And then he..."

Emi looked down at the floor, troubled.

Subaru lay a hand on her shoulder. She turned to him, "What did he say?"

"He said that...Takeshi wasn't who I thought he was. Something about him being able to tell when someone's acting. But Takeshi's been nothing but nice to me."

Emi noticed Subaru and Ukyo give each other a look. She wanted to ask what that was about but they had arrived on the fifth floor. They lead her out to the loft and down the stairs.

Once she got to the last step, she was pounced by Tsubaki, "Emi-chan, I missed you! I was getting tired of this sausage fest here!"

A smile returned to Emi's face.

"Welcome back Emi-tan!"

An uneasy chill went down Emi's spine as she turned to Takeshi.

He smiled at her, just like he always did. Was Fuuto right? Was there something more to Takeshi?

Takeshi noticed her stare and his smile faltered, "Emi-tan?"

Emi shook her head. Fuuto must have been lying. He was just making an excuse to be mean. She smiled at her boyfriend, "I'm fine. A little shaken up that I had to knock some sense into Fuuto."

Tsubaki raised an eyebrow, "Is he dead?"

She turned to him quickly, "Tsubaki-san!?"

He laughed, "Kidding~! Hey, Kaname-nii, Azusa and I need your help on something! Can we talk in the kitchen."

"Sure thing."

The three brothers excused themselves and headed over to the kitchen. Kaname passed by Ukyo and touched his forearm. A quick glance passed between the brothers and Ukyo nodded, turning his attention to Takeshi while Kaname headed into the kitchen after the twins.

Ukyo stretched his hand toward Takeshi, "I'm Ukyo. It's nice to finally meet you, Takeshi-kun. I heard about the incident with Fuuto. I do apologize for that."

Takeshi took his hand, "It's okay. I'm just a little shocked that more of you didn't tell me off."

Ukyo chuckled, "I assure you that not all of us are like Fuuto. Oh, and this is Subaru, he goes to Meiji like Emi-chan."

Subaru moved forward and shook Takeshi's hand, "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

"Well," Ukyo made his way toward the kitchen, "I'll get started on lunch."

Emi moved forward, "I'll help you."

Ukyo held his hand up, "It's okay Emi. You and Takeshi-kun haven't seen each other for a while. You should take this time to spend it together. I can have Kaname or Azusa help me out with the food."

She nodded and went to sit down next to Takeshi.

* * *

Lunch had gone by without a hitch. Fuuto didn't come back up and for that Emi was glad. The brothers kept asking Takeshi questions, nothing too personal, mostly about his hobbies and interests. Before Emi knew it, it was five and Takeshi decided it was time to leave.

"Thanks for coming by Takeshi-kun, it was fun." Masaomi said as he handed him an apple flavored lollipop.

Takeshi laughed, "Where the heck do you keep all those candies? Anyway, yeah, I enjoyed myself! We should do this again sometime."

A small murmur of agreement came from some of the brothers.

Emi took Takeshi's hand, "I'll go see you off at the entrance."

He nodded and turned back to the brothers and bowed, "Thanks for your hospitality!"

The brothers bowed back and waved him off.

Emi lead him up the stairs and to the elevator. Once the door closed, Takeshi let out a shaky sigh, "That was exhausting!"

Emi smiled, "What do you mean?"

"I kept thinking that they were gonna tell me to break up with you and leave you. I don't think Tsubaki-san liked me very much."

"I'm sorry Takeshi."

He looked down at her, "What? Why? You're not breaking up with me are you?"

She shook her head quickly, "No! About Fuuto...I'm sorry. He had no right to talk to you that way."

Emi felt Takeshi's arms around her. She looked up at him. He was smiling down at her, "It's okay. I'm a little happy that you stood up for me. But don't worry. He's probably a little jealous that his big sister is giving her attention to another guy."

She smiled and hugged him back.

_"Are you sure your boyfriend is who he says he is?"_

She mentally shook away Fuuto's biting words. Takeshi wasn't a liar. He had no reason to lie. What could he possibly gain from lying to her? No, Takeshi was a sweet and honest guy. He couldn't be anything else.

She repeated that mantra in her head. But no matter what she told herself otherwise, the seed of distrust had already taken hold, whether she knew it at the moment or not.

* * *

**A/N: Yay! Another chapter done! Once again, I'm so sorry to all of you whom I've kept waiting! For those of you who don't know! This past month has been completely hectic for me! Assignments and projects due and midterms to boot! Thankfully I'm on my spring break right now, so I finally had the chance to type up this chapter. I'll try to have the next chapter out by the end of the week, so keep your fingers crossed!  
**

**Now review time! Did you guys like the whole bento scene with the brothers? What do you think about Takeshi and Emi's dynamic? Fuuto's revelation about Takeshi not being who he is? Weird thing about Takeshi (for me, at least) is that I'm actually liking him. I hope I'm not the only one. I've been asking some readers about this, and I've decided to make this story with multi-endings. I'll be putting up a poll to vote for your favorite brother, and whoever gets the most votes will be the first of the many multi-endings!**

**Thank you all for reading!**

**-W.W.**


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